Germany calls Berlin Pride attack suspected Islamic terror strike; hunt on for accused | 10 points

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt has called the fatal attack near Berlin’s Pride festival believed to be an “Islamic terror attack”. A van came ramming and stabbing at the Pride festival’s closing party, which left one person dead and several others injured as police begun its search operation. 

The authorities have issued a notice and given a warning to the people against approaching Abdul Ballout, who is a German citizen but has roots in Lebanon. “Everything we see here points to us dealing with an Islamic terror attack,” Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said. 

Here are 10 points on the development:

1 – Man drives car into crowd at Pride festival’s closing party. Suspect allegedly attacked people with a suspected machete. 

2 – Police spokesperson Florian Nath stated that “the suspect is known to police. He is known to us as a member of Islamic circles here in Berlin, and our search for this person is proceeding at full speed.”

3 – German prosecutors stated that previously sought to join the Islamic State group. The police have begun the search operation in the city.

4 – As per the police, a white van drove into the Tiergarten park around 10 pm, hitting several people and colliding with a tree. Police said a woman was killed. The man then stabbed a few people with a machete, news agency AP reported.

5 – The event was then called off at 10:15 PM. A band’s performance was interrupted as people were urged to go home. 

6 – Ricarda Hofmann was one of the presenters at the event. She shared her experience, stating, “What happened today has changed something in me.”

7 – Interior Minister Dobrindt stated that, “everything we see here points to us dealing with an Islamic terror attack.” He said 29 people were injured in the incident.

8 – The festival was one of Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ celebrations. Hundreds of thousands gathered for the festival in Berlin. 

9 – Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the incident as “an attack on our society”, adding, “What an abhorrent act in Berlin. He said that Germany loves freedom, “and we will preserve and defend that.”

10 –  Amsterdam is hosting World Pride this week. Mayor Femke Halsema said authorities and organisers “are closely monitoring the security situation” after the Berlin attack.

Also Read:

Vessel with four Indians aboard struck in Ukraine’s Odesa, India issues Black Sea advisory