German police arrested a 50-year-old Saudi Arabian doctor, Taleb Abdul Jawad, who allegedly rammed a car into a Christmas market in Magdeburg.
Video footage of the incident circulated on social media platforms shows a speeding black BMW SUV smashed through protective barriers in the bustling festive market on Friday evening, December 20.
This horrific incident killed five, including a toddler, and injured more than 200, 40 of whom remain in critical condition, Reuters reported.
According to sources, the incident has also injured seven Indian nationals. “Three of them have been discharged from the hospital. Our Mission is in touch with all those injured in the attack,” they said.
India condemns attack on German Christmas market
“We condemn the horrific and senseless attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany. Several precious lives have been lost and many have been injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement on Saturday, December 21.
“Our Mission is in contact with Indians who are injured, as well as their families, and rendering all possible assistance,” it added.
Here is what we know about the suspect so far:
Taleb Abdul Jawad, identified as Taleb A, is a consultant for psychiatry and psychotherapy, according to a report by The Guardian.
According to his social media profile, Taleb is a vocal critic of Islam and supports Alternative for Germany (AfD), a far-right German political party, which has an anti-immigration stance.
Taleb was born in Hofuf, a Saudi Arabian city, in 1974. He has been living in Germany since 2006 and is a resident of the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.
The BBC reported that he was unable to express his atheist beliefs in Saudi Arabia.
After settling in Germany, Taleb launched “wearesaudi.net” to aid ex-Muslims fleeing the Gulf region and provide information for others seeking similar support.
As per multiple media reports, he is wanted in Saudi Arabia on charges of terrorism and smuggling women from the Middle East into European countries. Despite the charges brought against him, Germany refused to extradite him to Saudi Arabia and granted him asylum in 2016.
‘Lone attacker’
Commenting on the incident, Saxony-Anhalt state premier Reiner Haseloff told reporters, “We have arrested the perpetrator, a man from Saudi Arabia, a doctor who has been in Germany since 2006. From what we currently know, he was a lone attacker, so we don’t think there is any further danger.”
The attack occurred eight years after an attack on a Berlin Christmas market. In 2016, an Islamist extremist drove a lorry into a Berlin Christmas market, causing 12 deaths. The attacker was killed in a shootout in Italy days later.
