Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Driver rammed into crowd ‘on purpose’
Almost 50 people were injured, some seriously, in the incident which is a suspected terrorist attack.
The authorities had previously said nine people were killed when the vehicle tore through tables and wooden stands outside the popular market at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church.
The attack came late yesterday as tourists and l ocals were enjoying an evening out near Berlin’s Zoo station.
“All police measures concerning the suspected terror attack at Breitscheidplatz are being taken with great speed and the necessary care,” said police.
Hours earlier Germany’s most senior security official had refrained from labelling it an intentional act, but said evidence pointed in that direction, while the White House condemned “what appears to have been a terrorist attack”.
The crash came less than a month after the US State Department called for caution at markets and other public places across Europe, saying extremist groups including Islamic State and al Qaida were focusing “on the upcoming holiday season and associated events”.
Both groups have called on followers to use trucks in particular to attack crowds.
On July 14, a truck ploughed into
THE driver who rammed a truck into a crowded Christmas market in the heart of Berlin killing at least 12 people did so intentionally, police said.
Bastille Day revellers in the southern French city of Nice, killing 86 people.
IS claimed responsibility for that attack, which was carried out by a Tunisian living in France.
After the Berlin attack, dozens of ambulances lined the streets waiting to evacuate people and heavily armed police patrolled the area. The authorities used Twitter to urge people to stay away, saying they needed to keep the streets clear for rescue vehicles.
Among the dead was a passenger in the truck, who succumbed as paramedics treated him. Berlin police spokesman Winfried Wenzel said later the man was a Polish national.
A suspect believed to be the driver was picked up about 1.5 miles away. He was being interrogated, Mr Wenzel said.
The truck was registered in Poland, and police initially said it was believed to have been stolen from a building site there.