Car drives into idyllic Germany Christmas market in suspected terror attack: report

A festive Christmas market in eastern Germany erupted into chaos after a car was driven into a group of people in the city of Magdeburg on Friday in a suspected terror attack.

Between 60 and 80 people have been injured, according to a spokesman for the local rescue service, as reported by AFP, as officials continue to investigate the incident.

Several of the injured were said to be in critical condition, and multiple reports citing German public broadcaster MDR said at least two people had been killed, one of the two reportedly a child.

Rescue workers in action at the Christmas market in Magdeburg. Photo: Dörthe Hein/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa (Photo by Dörthe Hein/image alliance via Getty Images) (Dörthe Hein/image alliance via Getty Images)

The Associated Press reported that Saxony-Anhalt’s interior minister, Tamara Zieschang, told reporters that the suspect is a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who first came to Germany in 2006.

German tabloid BILD also reported that the driver drove about 400 meters across the market, although police forces have yet to confirm this to Fox News Digital.

The local police force went to X to confirm that “Extensive police actions are currently taking place at the Magdeburg Christmas market.

“The Christmas market in the city center is closed,” it added. “Further reports will be made.”

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, did not provide any updates, but said in a message sent to X in German: “The reports from Magdeburg indicate that something bad is happening.

“My thoughts are with the victims and their families,” he added. “We stand by their side and by the side of the people of Magdeburg. My thanks go to the committed rescue workers in these anxious hours.”

Emergency services attend an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, December 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP) (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser last month assured market-goers that while there was no sign of any danger in attending the Christmas markets, it was best to remain vigilant, reported the Independent.

The incident, which involved a vehicle driving through a Christmas market, mirrored previous attacks carried out in Germany, including in 2016 when a truck drove through a holiday market in Berlin, killing 12 people and injuring about 50 others, at the White House at time said it was believed to be a terrorist attack.

This story is in development.