Authorities charge car-ramming suspect with 5 counts of murder

German authorities charged the suspect in the deadly attack on a Christmas market in the city of Magdeburg that killed five and wounded 200 with numerous counts of murder, attempted murder and other charges, the police announced early Sunday morning.

The suspect, who has been identified as Taleb A according to German privacy laws, was charged with five counts of murder, multiple counts of attempted murder and multiple counts of inflicting grievous bodily harm and remains in pre-trial detention, the police said. The man had been brought before a judge on Saturday evening.

The suspect is said to have used unobstructed emergency lanes to speed through the Christmas market on Friday, hitting people at high speed. Four women aged 45, 52, 67, and 75, as well as a nine-year-old boy, were killed, they said.

The attack sparked shock and mourning not only in Germany but worldwide.

Investigators say the suspect acted alone, as there are currently no indications of a second perpetrator according to their findings.

Magdeburg is a city of some 237,000 people in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, some 150 kilometres west of Berlin.

Suspect is Islam-critical activist

Taleb A is a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia, known as an Islam-critical activist. He has made erratic accusations on social media and in interviews, claiming German authorities are not doing enough to combat Islamism.

Previously an advocate for Saudi women fleeing their country, he later advised against seeking asylum in Germany, writing on his website in English and Arabic: “My advice: don’t ask for asylum in Germany.”

Too early for definitive asssessment

The motive is still too unclear for a definitive assessment, but despite the attack’s nature, there is no indication it was Islamist-motivated, a top law enforcement official said.

The head of Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Münch, told German public broadcaster ZDF on Saturday that it is not conclusively possible to say that the act was politically motivated, although he acknowledged the suspect displayed an anti-Islamic attitude and engaged in far-right platforms.

Chief Public Prosecutor Horst Walter Nopens in Magdeburg speculated that the motive could be dissatisfaction with the handling of refugees from Saudi Arabia in Germany.

Münch said after the BKA received a tip-off from Saudi Arabia about the man in November 2023, “a case was initiated here as well. The police in Saxony-Anhalt also carried out corresponding investigative measures,” he said.

“He had various contacts with authorities, made insults, and occasionally threats, but was not known for acts of violence,” Münch said about the suspect. These matters need to be reassessed to check if anything was overlooked by security authorities.

“We have a completely atypical pattern here, and we need to calmly analyse it now.”

Saudi Arabian security sources said they had warned Germany about the suspected attacker and had requested the extradition of the suspect, but Germany had not responded.

They said the man was a Shiite Muslim who comes from the city of Al-Hofuf in eastern Saudi Arabia. Shiites are a minority in the country, making up only around 10% in the majority Sunni nation.
There are repeated reports of discrimination against Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia.

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