Berlin Pride attack suspect hunted after van rams crowd, woman killed
A van attack near Berlin's Pride celebrations killed a woman and injured 29 people, and police are hunting the suspect. The case is being treated as an Islamist terror attack, prompting wider security reviews and defiance from the LGBTQ+ community.
German authorities on Sunday were searching for a man accused of driving a van into a crowd near Berlin’s Pride festival, killing a woman and injuring 29 people, before apparently stabbing others with a machete. Investigators said the case appeared to be an Islamist terror attack and warned that the suspect might be armed and dangerous.
Authorities identified the suspect as Abdul Ballout, a German citizen with Lebanese roots. The violence happened a short distance from the Christopher Street Day celebrations near the Brandenburg Gate, leading organisers to call off the event, while officials said security at other major gatherings could be reviewed.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said: “Everything we see here points to us dealing with an Islamic terror attack.” He said the suspect had come to the attention of authorities earlier because of numerous previous crimes, though he did not give details, and also because of “radicalisation and belonging to the Islamist scene” in Berlin. Dobrindt said Ballout was born in Germany and that his mother was naturalised in 2002, three years before he was born. He also said the suspect had previously been convicted in Berlin and had received a suspended sentence of one year and 10 months.
Police issued a wanted notice and told people not to approach Ballout, saying he could be armed and dangerous. Officers carried out operations across the city, including a search at an apartment in Berlin’s Schneberg district early on Sunday, but said they did not find anyone there.
Ashley Jump, a 26-year-old UK resident, had travelled to Berlin for Saturday’s Pride parade but had left the celebrations before the attack. They returned on Sunday to leave flowers at a memorial near the scene in support of the LGBTQ+ community. “They’ll never erase us, we’ll never be gone,” they said. “As long as humanity has existed, we’ve existed. And as long as humanity exists, we will exist. We will not be removed.”
According to police, a white van drove into Tiergarten park at about 10 pm, hit several people and then crashed into a tree. The closing party of Christopher Street Day was under way at the time next to the Brandenburg Gate, after a parade involving about 80 trucks had moved through central Berlin earlier in the day. Police said the attack did not take place at the festival, on its route or at the closing party, but a few hundred metres away on a track in the park. The crowd there was likely a mix of festivalgoers and other local people or visitors.
Police said a woman was killed. Berlin’s fire service said three people suffered life-threatening injuries and another eight were seriously hurt. The Pride event next to the Brandenburg Gate was called off at about 10.15 pm, with a band’s performance on stage interrupted, and people were told to go home and avoid the route through the park. Hundreds of thousands of people had come to Berlin for the celebrations on Saturday, though it was not clear how many were still there late in the evening. The damaged van was still at the scene on Sunday morning. “We are simply stunned by what happened,” said Andre Lehmann of the national LGBTQ+ association LSVD+. “This suspected attack hits the heart of the queer community.”
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said law enforcement would find the suspect. “I would like to say this to Christopher Street Day participants here in Berlin but also across Germany: Don’t let yourselves, let us not let ourselves, be intimidated,” he said. “These acts have only one purpose: They aim to divide our society. They want to take away from us the most important thing we have: namely, our openness and our freedom.”
Dobrindt said he expected security measures at other major events in Germany, including Pride events elsewhere, to be reviewed and, if necessary, significantly strengthened. Referring to the possibility of similar crimes elsewhere, he said: “This is not typical of such situations, but it also can’t be ruled out.”
Berlin has faced Islamist attacks before. In December 2016, a rejected asylum seeker from Tunisia drove a hijacked truck into a Christmas market, killing 13 people and injuring dozens. He was killed days later in a shootout in Italy. In February last year, a Spanish tourist was stabbed and seriously wounded at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial. A Syrian man was convicted in March and sentenced to 13 years in prison. “Saturday’s violence is suspected to be an Islamist terror attack on our way of living together, on our liberal democracy, on our openness and our freedom,” Wegener said.
In the neighbouring Netherlands, Amsterdam is hosting World Pride this week and next alongside its annual Pride celebrations. Mayor Femke Halsema said authorities and organisers “are closely monitoring the security situation” after the Berlin attack, but wanted to ensure that any extra measures did not get in the way of celebrating freedom and love.
The attack near Berlin’s Pride festival left one woman dead, 29 people injured and a suspect on the run, as investigators treated the case as an Islamist terror attack and authorities moved to tighten vigilance around other major events.
With PTI Inputs
German authorities on Sunday were searching for a man accused of driving a van into a crowd near Berlin’s Pride festival, killing a woman and injuring 29 people, before apparently stabbing others with a machete. Investigators said the case appeared to be an Islamist terror attack and warned that the suspect might be armed and dangerous.
Authorities identified the suspect as Abdul Ballout, a German citizen with Lebanese roots. The violence happened a short distance from the Christopher Street Day celebrations near the Brandenburg Gate, leading organisers to call off the event, while officials said security at other major gatherings could be reviewed.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said: “Everything we see here points to us dealing with an Islamic terror attack.” He said the suspect had come to the attention of authorities earlier because of numerous previous crimes, though he did not give details, and also because of “radicalisation and belonging to the Islamist scene” in Berlin. Dobrindt said Ballout was born in Germany and that his mother was naturalised in 2002, three years before he was born. He also said the suspect had previously been convicted in Berlin and had received a suspended sentence of one year and 10 months.
Police issued a wanted notice and told people not to approach Ballout, saying he could be armed and dangerous. Officers carried out operations across the city, including a search at an apartment in Berlin’s Schneberg district early on Sunday, but said they did not find anyone there.
Ashley Jump, a 26-year-old UK resident, had travelled to Berlin for Saturday’s Pride parade but had left the celebrations before the attack. They returned on Sunday to leave flowers at a memorial near the scene in support of the LGBTQ+ community. “They’ll never erase us, we’ll never be gone,” they said. “As long as humanity has existed, we’ve existed. And as long as humanity exists, we will exist. We will not be removed.”
According to police, a white van drove into Tiergarten park at about 10 pm, hit several people and then crashed into a tree. The closing party of Christopher Street Day was under way at the time next to the Brandenburg Gate, after a parade involving about 80 trucks had moved through central Berlin earlier in the day. Police said the attack did not take place at the festival, on its route or at the closing party, but a few hundred metres away on a track in the park. The crowd there was likely a mix of festivalgoers and other local people or visitors.
Police said a woman was killed. Berlin’s fire service said three people suffered life-threatening injuries and another eight were seriously hurt. The Pride event next to the Brandenburg Gate was called off at about 10.15 pm, with a band’s performance on stage interrupted, and people were told to go home and avoid the route through the park. Hundreds of thousands of people had come to Berlin for the celebrations on Saturday, though it was not clear how many were still there late in the evening. The damaged van was still at the scene on Sunday morning. “We are simply stunned by what happened,” said Andre Lehmann of the national LGBTQ+ association LSVD+. “This suspected attack hits the heart of the queer community.”
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said law enforcement would find the suspect. “I would like to say this to Christopher Street Day participants here in Berlin but also across Germany: Don’t let yourselves, let us not let ourselves, be intimidated,” he said. “These acts have only one purpose: They aim to divide our society. They want to take away from us the most important thing we have: namely, our openness and our freedom.”
Dobrindt said he expected security measures at other major events in Germany, including Pride events elsewhere, to be reviewed and, if necessary, significantly strengthened. Referring to the possibility of similar crimes elsewhere, he said: “This is not typical of such situations, but it also can’t be ruled out.”
Berlin has faced Islamist attacks before. In December 2016, a rejected asylum seeker from Tunisia drove a hijacked truck into a Christmas market, killing 13 people and injuring dozens. He was killed days later in a shootout in Italy. In February last year, a Spanish tourist was stabbed and seriously wounded at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial. A Syrian man was convicted in March and sentenced to 13 years in prison. “Saturday’s violence is suspected to be an Islamist terror attack on our way of living together, on our liberal democracy, on our openness and our freedom,” Wegener said.
In the neighbouring Netherlands, Amsterdam is hosting World Pride this week and next alongside its annual Pride celebrations. Mayor Femke Halsema said authorities and organisers “are closely monitoring the security situation” after the Berlin attack, but wanted to ensure that any extra measures did not get in the way of celebrating freedom and love.
The attack near Berlin’s Pride festival left one woman dead, 29 people injured and a suspect on the run, as investigators treated the case as an Islamist terror attack and authorities moved to tighten vigilance around other major events.
With PTI Inputs
German authorities on Sunday were searching for a man accused of driving a van into a crowd near Berlin’s Pride festival, killing a woman and injuring 29 people, before apparently stabbing others with a machete. Investigators said the case appeared to be an Islamist terror attack and warned that the suspect might be armed and dangerous.
Authorities identified the suspect as Abdul Ballout, a German citizen with Lebanese roots. The violence happened a short distance from the Christopher Street Day celebrations near the Brandenburg Gate, leading organisers to call off the event, while officials said security at other major gatherings could be reviewed.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said: “Everything we see here points to us dealing with an Islamic terror attack.” He said the suspect had come to the attention of authorities earlier because of numerous previous crimes, though he did not give details, and also because of “radicalisation and belonging to the Islamist scene” in Berlin. Dobrindt said Ballout was born in Germany and that his mother was naturalised in 2002, three years before he was born. He also said the suspect had previously been convicted in Berlin and had received a suspended sentence of one year and 10 months.
Police issued a wanted notice and told people not to approach Ballout, saying he could be armed and dangerous. Officers carried out operations across the city, including a search at an apartment in Berlin’s Schneberg district early on Sunday, but said they did not find anyone there.
Ashley Jump, a 26-year-old UK resident, had travelled to Berlin for Saturday’s Pride parade but had left the celebrations before the attack. They returned on Sunday to leave flowers at a memorial near the scene in support of the LGBTQ+ community. “They’ll never erase us, we’ll never be gone,” they said. “As long as humanity has existed, we’ve existed. And as long as humanity exists, we will exist. We will not be removed.”
According to police, a white van drove into Tiergarten park at about 10 pm, hit several people and then crashed into a tree. The closing party of Christopher Street Day was under way at the time next to the Brandenburg Gate, after a parade involving about 80 trucks had moved through central Berlin earlier in the day. Police said the attack did not take place at the festival, on its route or at the closing party, but a few hundred metres away on a track in the park. The crowd there was likely a mix of festivalgoers and other local people or visitors.
Police said a woman was killed. Berlin’s fire service said three people suffered life-threatening injuries and another eight were seriously hurt. The Pride event next to the Brandenburg Gate was called off at about 10.15 pm, with a band’s performance on stage interrupted, and people were told to go home and avoid the route through the park. Hundreds of thousands of people had come to Berlin for the celebrations on Saturday, though it was not clear how many were still there late in the evening. The damaged van was still at the scene on Sunday morning. “We are simply stunned by what happened,” said Andre Lehmann of the national LGBTQ+ association LSVD+. “This suspected attack hits the heart of the queer community.”
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said law enforcement would find the suspect. “I would like to say this to Christopher Street Day participants here in Berlin but also across Germany: Don’t let yourselves, let us not let ourselves, be intimidated,” he said. “These acts have only one purpose: They aim to divide our society. They want to take away from us the most important thing we have: namely, our openness and our freedom.”
Dobrindt said he expected security measures at other major events in Germany, including Pride events elsewhere, to be reviewed and, if necessary, significantly strengthened. Referring to the possibility of similar crimes elsewhere, he said: “This is not typical of such situations, but it also can’t be ruled out.”
Berlin has faced Islamist attacks before. In December 2016, a rejected asylum seeker from Tunisia drove a hijacked truck into a Christmas market, killing 13 people and injuring dozens. He was killed days later in a shootout in Italy. In February last year, a Spanish tourist was stabbed and seriously wounded at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial. A Syrian man was convicted in March and sentenced to 13 years in prison. “Saturday’s violence is suspected to be an Islamist terror attack on our way of living together, on our liberal democracy, on our openness and our freedom,” Wegener said.
In the neighbouring Netherlands, Amsterdam is hosting World Pride this week and next alongside its annual Pride celebrations. Mayor Femke Halsema said authorities and organisers “are closely monitoring the security situation” after the Berlin attack, but wanted to ensure that any extra measures did not get in the way of celebrating freedom and love.
The attack near Berlin’s Pride festival left one woman dead, 29 people injured and a suspect on the run, as investigators treated the case as an Islamist terror attack and authorities moved to tighten vigilance around other major events.
With PTI Inputs
