Police name suspect after car driven into Berlin Pride event, with one dead and 16 injured

Police name suspect after car driven into Berlin Pride event, with one dead and 16 injured

Berlin police have identified a 21-year-old suspect following an attack during the city's annual Pride celebrations, known as Christopher Street Day, on Saturday. One woman is dead and 16 others were injured after a white minivan drove at speed into a crowd in Tiergarten park around 10 p.m.

The suspect has been named by police as Abdul B. He is described as having a slim build, black hair, and is approximately 1.9m tall. He was last seen wearing a black hoodie and white trousers. Authorities have warned the public not to approach him, stating he may be armed and dangerous.

A city-wide manhunt is underway involving thousands of officers, including more than 2,200 deployed across Berlin, according to the newspaper Welt. Police are utilizing helicopters equipped with thermal-imaging cameras to track the suspect. While Abdul B is the primary suspect, police noted that one or more people were believed to have exited the vehicle after it collided with a tree along the Ahornsteig road in the park.

Casualties and Scene Details

Emergency services reported 16 injured, with eight suffering serious injuries. Of those, three were in life-threatening condition. Police spokesman Florian Nath warned that the death toll could rise as some victims may not survive the night.

Beyond the vehicle ramming, witnesses reported seeing people on the ground with stab wounds. The white minivan was found abandoned in the park, though police noted it was initially difficult to identify due to the extent of the damage it sustained during the collision.

The attack forced the immediate cancellation of the Pride event. Attendees were told to evacuate, with some exiting through the Brandenburg Gate.

Suspect Background and Investigation

Police described Abdul B as being associated with the Islamist scene or Islamist spectrum in Berlin. While German police have not publicly confirmed the suspect's full identity, the newspaper Bild reported that the man is Abdul Ballout, a German citizen of Lebanese origin born in Berlin in 2005. Bild further claimed he had been released from juvenile detention in May and allegedly supported the Islamic State.

Germany's federal prosecutors are in contact with Berlin investigators. While the country's top prosecution authority typically assumes control of suspected terrorism cases, a spokesperson for the office told the news agency DPA that they have not formally taken over the case at this stage.

Official Responses

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned the heinous act as an attack on our society. In a statement, Merz said he and Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt would push to make sure this horrific act is fully investigated and punished.

Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner described the incident as an attack on a free and open society, noting that the city of freedom had been attacked in the most horrific way.

From the UK, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting called the event an absolutely horrific disaster, stating that such attacks are becoming far too common on our television screens. The British Embassy in Berlin advised British nationals in the Tiergarten area to follow local police instructions.

Context of Vehicle Attacks

This incident follows a pattern of vehicle-ramming attacks in Germany. Recent cases include:

• A December 2024 attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, where the suspect was described as a Saudi Arabian psychiatrist with a history of anti-Islamic rhetoric.
• An attack in Munich by an Afghan national that killed two and injured more than 40 people at a trade union demonstration.
• A crash in Mannheim last year involving a 40-year-old man described as psychologically unwell, resulting in two deaths.
• A May incident in Leipzig where a man believed to have mental health issues killed two people in a pedestrian zone.

The Christopher Street Day event, which commemorates the 1969 Stonewall rebellion in New York, is one of Europe's largest LGBTQ celebrations, drawing hundreds of thousands of people to the German capital annually.

Police continue to request that witnesses share photos and videos taken during the attack via X to assist in the ongoing investigation.