After the attack on Magdeburg, the Germans called on to remain united

The German head of state launched a call on Tuesday for the unity and cohesion of the country after the deadly attack in Magdeburg which fueled extremist discourse in the middle of the campaign for the legislative elections in February

In his traditional Christmas speech, Frank-Walter Steinmeier spoke of “the shadow” thrown into the end-of-year celebrations by the car-ramming attack which left five dead and more than 200 injured Friday evening at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, in the north-east of Germany.

“Many will have heavy hearts this Christmas season. Many will be upset, worried, perhaps even frightened. All these feelings are understandable. But they must not dominate us, nor paralyze us”added the head of state according to the text of his speech, which will be broadcast on public television on Tuesday.

The alleged perpetrator of the attack is a 50-year-old Saudi, Taleb Jawad al-Abdulmohsen, arrested Friday evening, a trained psychiatrist working in a clinic not far from Magdeburg. He charged into the crowd in a powerful rental BMW vehicle.

A difficult personality to pin down, very active on social networks, he has pell-mell expressed opinions hostile to Islam, his anger against German immigration officials and his support for far-right conspiracy stories on a “Islamization” of Europe.

Manifestations

“Hate and violence must not have the last word. Let us not allow ourselves to be divided. Let’s stay united! »and exhorted M. Steinmeier.

“Cohesion, when necessary, is what characterizes our country. Let’s show it now”added the head of state.

Even if the suspect’s motives remain unclear, the attack, which cost the lives of four women and a nine-year-old child, has placed the questions of immigration and security at the heart of the campaign for the early legislative elections. from February 23.

Living in Germany since 2006, Taleb Jawad al-Abdulmohsen had refugee status.

Saudi Arabia had asked Berlin in vain for his extradition, after repeatedly warning that he “could be dangerous”a source close to the government in Riyadh told AFP.

Shortly after the attack, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party denounced the reception of hundreds of thousands of refugees in the country in recent years.

On Monday evening, some 3,500 people – according to the police – joined a rally organized by the AfD in Magdeburg to commemorate the tragedy.

Against instrumentalization

Speaking on Cathedral Square, party co-chair Alice Weidel asked “change so that we can finally live in safety again”as the crowd chanted “expulsion, expulsion, expulsion!” »

“We must close the borders (…), we can no longer welcome madmen from all countries”and launched Jan Wenzel Schmidt, head of the AfD in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.

Two months before the elections of February 23, this formation, hostile to migrants, anti-system and pro-Russian, is credited with around 20% of voting intentions in the polls, behind the conservatives of the CDU/CSU (32%) and ahead the social democratic party of Olaf Scholz (15%).

At the same time, on Monday evening, an anti-AfD initiative brought together around 4,000 people who formed a human chain, with candles and lights, in the center of Magdeburg.

Baptized “Don’t give hatred a chance”this movement said “to note with fear and anger that people want to use this cruel act for their politics” and called for “tolerance and humanity”.

Under pressure, Olaf Scholz’s government promised a rapid and thorough investigation to clarify possible errors in preventing the attack, committed eight years after a similar act perpetrated at a Berlin Christmas market, which killed 13 dead.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and senior officials will be heard on December 30 by the Bundestag’s Interior Affairs Committee.