German Christmas market attack suspect remanded

A antheral accused of murdering 4 women and a nine-year-old lad by driving a car into them astatine a Christmas marketplace successful the German metropolis of Magdeburg has been remanded successful custody.

The 50-year-old was brought earlier Magdeburg territory tribunal connected Saturday evening pursuing the incidental connected Friday erstwhile a achromatic BMW car ploughed done the crowded marketplace injuring much than 200 people.

Magdeburg Police said investigations are continuing and officers are appealing for witnesses to nonstop successful photos oregon video of the incident.

The fishy has been named successful section media arsenic Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a 50-year-old Saudi national who arrived successful Germany successful 2006 and had worked arsenic a doctor.

On Sunday morning, Magdeburg constabulary confirmed 4 women - aged 45, 52, 67 and 75 - were besides killed successful the incident.

"The justice ordered pre-trial detention for 5 counts of murder, aggregate attempted execution and aggregate counts of unsafe bodily harm," its connection said.

City officials said astir 100 police, medics and firefighters, arsenic good arsenic 50 rescue work personnel, went to the country soon aft 19:00 section clip (18:00 GMT) connected Friday.

Witnesses described however they had to leap retired of the car's way during the attack.

In an interrogation with German insubstantial Bild, 1 pistillate called Nadine described being astatine the Christmas marketplace with her fellow Marco erstwhile the car came speeding towards them.

"He was deed and pulled distant from my side," the 32-year-old told the paper. "It was terrible."

Lars Frohmüller, a newsman for German nationalist broadcaster MDR, told BBC Radio 4's World Tonight programme helium saw "blood connected the floor" arsenic good arsenic "many doctors trying to support radical lukewarm and assistance them with their injuries".

A memorial work for victims of the onslaught was held astatine Magdeburg Cathedral connected Saturday evening

The work was attended by families of the victims, exigency workers and national authorities officials, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

During a sojourn to the marketplace earlier connected Saturday, Scholz described the onslaught arsenic a "dreadful tragedy" arsenic "so galore radical were injured and killed with specified brutality" successful a spot that is expected to beryllium "joyful".

He told reporters that determination were superior concerns for those who had been critically injured and that "all resources" volition beryllium allocated to investigating the fishy down the attack.

Previously, Reiner Haseloff, the premier of Saxony-Anhalt state, said a preliminary probe suggested the alleged attacker was acting alone.