Suspect in Berlin Pride Attack Shot Dead by Police

AP

The vehicle used to ram into a crowd at the Pride march is removed.

A suspected Islamist was shot dead by German police after allegedly driving a minivan into a crowd near a major LGBTQ Pride event in Berlin, authorities said on Sunday.

The vehicle-ramming attack took place at around 10 p.m. local time (2000 GMT) on Saturday in Tiergarten Park, close to the Brandenburg Gate, where thousands had gathered for Christopher Street Day, one of Europe's largest annual LGBTQ Pride celebrations.

According to police, one person was killed and 29 others were injured in the attack. The suspect was later located in Berlin's Spandau district, where he was fatally shot by law enforcement officers.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the incident and its motive. The attack has renewed security concerns surrounding major public events in Germany.

"Around 6 p.m. (1600 GMT), the suspect involved in yesterday's attack in Tiergarten was located at an allotment garden complex in Spandau," Berlin police wrote on X.

"According to initial findings, he ran towards officers while armed with a bladed weapon; police... subsequently opened fire. Despite immediate resuscitation efforts by the Berlin Fire Department, he died at the scene."

Berlin police identified the suspect as 21-year-old Abdul B. and released his photograph, appealing to the public for information that could assist in locating him.

Earlier, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the suspect had previously come to the attention of the authorities due to numerous criminal offences, his radicalisation, and his links to the Islamist scene. Dobrindt said the suspect is a German citizen of Lebanese descent who was born in Germany in 2005.

It was the latest in a series of vehicle attacks on crowds in Germany in recent years that have intensified debate around security and immigration amid a surge in support for the far-right.

Ahead of a memorial service at St Mary's Church in Berlin, centre-right Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged Germans to protect liberal values.

"We will defend the freedom, openness, and liberal spirit of our lives and our society with everything we can do," he said.

Source: Reuters



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