Berlin Police Say Suspect In Pride Attack Had Ties To Islamic ‘Circles’ In German Capital

BERLIN (AP) — German authorities issued a wanted notice Sunday for a fugitive suspect. truck crash One person died and at least 16 people were injured in the incident that took place near the Pride Festival in Berlin.

Police and prosecutors asked for help finding the 21-year-old suspect, whom they identified as Abdul B. They said he was believed to have injured several people in a moving vehicle late Saturday evening, and that one or more people had apparently abandoned that vehicle. It appears that several people were also stabbed, they added.

Sunday’s announcement warned the public to avoid “direct contact” with the suspect, saying he may be armed and dangerous.

Police had previously announced that they had identified a suspect with links to Islamic groups in the German capital.

Police spokesman Florian Nath said: “The suspect is known to the police. He is known to us as a member of Islamic circles in Berlin and our search for this person continues at full speed.”

Investigators had no knowledge of “his specific motives,” Nath added.

The police carried out an operation in the city while searching for the suspect. These included a search of an apartment in Berlin’s Schöneberg district early Sunday, but police said they found no one there.

Julian Miethig, who attended the nearby Pride festival, said he wanted to go to the after-party after hearing from a friend that “something bad was going on there and there were a lot of fire trucks, a lot of emergency vehicles and ambulances.”

“It’s a dark day for society,” he said.

According to police, a white van entered Tiergarten park around 10pm and hit several people before crashing into a tree. at the closing party pride festivalThe event, known as Christopher Street Day, was underway a short distance away next to the Brandenburg Gate, following a parade of around 80 trucks through Berlin city center earlier in the day.

Police said a woman was killed. The Berlin fire brigade said three people suffered life-threatening injuries, eight others were seriously injured and five people had minor injuries.

The Pride Parade near the Brandenburg Gate was canceled at around 22.15, and a band’s performance on stage was also interrupted. People were urged to return home and avoid using the route through the park.

Ricarda Hofmann, one of the Pride party hosts, wrote in an Instagram post that she was there “not just as a moderator, but as part of a community coming together to be visible. To celebrate love. To defend each other.”

He said the attack left him speechless. “What happened today changed something in me,” he wrote.

Hundreds of thousands of people had come to Berlin to celebrate on Saturday, but it was unclear how many people were still at the festival by late evening. One of the largest in Europe LGBTQ+ celebrations.

The van, with its front leaning against a weathered tree, was still visible at the scene Sunday morning.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz called what happened “an attack on our society.”

“What a disgusting behavior in Berlin,” Merz wrote in his post on X. Germany loves freedom, he added, “and we will protect and defend it.”

Associated Press writers Kirsten Grieshaber and Fanny Brodersen in Berlin contributed to this report.