What’s new
A Saudi national was reportedly arrested Friday after allegedly driving a car into crowds at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, killing at least two people and injuring more than 50 others.
The context
German newspaper Die Papule reported that a rental car was used to injure or kill between 60 and 80 people at the market, while police had not “ruled out” that an explosive device could also have been used in the apparent attack. The suspect was born in Saudi Arabia in 1974.
“Officials now say the driver is Saudi,” CNN’s Jake Tapper said on a Friday night broadcast. “He is a doctor and has lived in Germany since 2006.”
Although the motive is not yet clear, the nature of Friday’s incident and the suspect’s national origin quickly gave rise to speculation that it may have been an Islamist terrorist attack.
At least 13 people were killed and dozens injured on December 19, 2016, in a similar incident at a Christmas market in Berlin. The person believed responsible, an extremist linked to ISIS, was killed in a shooting days later in Italy.
Craig Stennett/Getty Images
This is a developing story and will be updated when more information becomes available.
