German court opens trial of Saudi doctor for Christmas market attack

A nine-year-old lad and 5 women were killed successful the ramming onslaught successful a engaged market.

A tribunal successful southeastern Germany is acceptable to unfastened the proceedings of a Saudi Arabian doc who is suspected of carrying retired a ramming onslaught past year.

Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a 51-year-old psychiatrist, volition look successful tribunal connected Monday successful the municipality of Magdeburg, accused of sidesplitting six radical and wounding much than 300 erstwhile helium drove a van into a engaged Christmas market past December.

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The suspect has been charged with six murders, the attempted execution of different 338 people, and committing a “treacherous attack”. The victims killed included a nine-year-old lad and 5 women aged 45 to 75.

Because of the ample fig of victims, a hallway has been prepared arsenic a peculiar tribunal that volition beryllium capable to spot each participants, who are believed to see much than 140 co-plaintiffs and 400 witnesses.

The suspect, who has expressed antipathy towards Islam and sympathy with far-right politics, volition beryllium seated successful a bullet-proof booth amid a dense beingness by German information forces.

Al-Abdulmohsen, who arrived to unrecorded successful Germany successful 2006, has been successful custody since the time of the transgression connected December 20, 2024, faces beingness imprisonment for execution if recovered guilty.

The co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, Alice Weidel, attends a commemoration aft the Christmas marketplace car-ramming onslaught successful Magdeburg, eastbound Germany, connected December 23, 2024 (AFP)

According to prosecutors, al-Abdulmohsen was not nether the power of alcohol oregon different substances and “acted retired of dissatisfaction and vexation implicit the people and result of a civilian quality and the nonaccomplishment of assorted transgression complaints”.

He has described himself arsenic a “Saudi atheist” and an activistic who is captious of Islam.

Abdulmohsen’s online activities besides included disapproval of Germany for accepting excessively galore Muslim refugees and backing for conspiracy theories astir the “Islamisation” of Europe. He has expressed enactment for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

Despite that, the AfD held a “memorial” rally at the country of the attack, stating that the “terror” arriving successful Magdeburg indispensable beryllium halted.

Co-leader Alice Weidel besides referred to Abdulmohsen arsenic an “Islamist” arsenic she spoke astatine the rally. Such rhetoric has helped the far-right enactment gain prominence successful Germany.

Following the attack, information services faced uncomfortable questions astir whether it could person been prevented, fixed Abdulmohsen’s past of utmost rhetoric and convulsive threats.