German police kill suspect in Berlin Pride van attack, call it terror
Police killed the main suspect after a van hit Berlin Pride crowds, killing one woman and injuring dozens. Authorities called it a likely Islamist terror attack.
German police killed the main suspect in the Berlin Pride van attack during a confrontation in a suburb of the capital on Sunday, after a nearly 24-hour manhunt. The van drove into a crowd at Christopher Street Day near Tiergarten park and the Brandenburg Gate on Saturday evening, killing one woman and injuring 16 other people, some seriously or in life-threatening condition; later tallies raised the number of injured to 29.
Police identified the suspect as 21-year-old Abdul Ballout, a German citizen with Lebanese roots. They said he was known to police and linked to Islamist or Islamic circles in Berlin. After releasing his name and photo, officers searched through the night before he was shot dead in the police confrontation. German authorities said the available evidence pointed to an Islamist extremist attack, but they did not spell out a wider network or any detailed explanation of the specific targeting beyond the Pride crowd.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the evidence pointed to an Islamist terror attack, while Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner described it as an attack on a free and open-minded society. Organizers called off Berlin Pride celebrations and a concert after the crash. Christopher Street Day is one of Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ gatherings and draws hundreds of thousands of people to Berlin each year. A vigil and memorial gathering at Brandenburg Gate followed the attack.
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