Grief, anger and fear in Magdeburg as authorities seek answers on Christmas market attack suspect

After the carnage at the Magdeburg Christmas market, there are now questions about whether something was missed.

Could the man accused of killing five and injuring more than 200 others have been stopped?

The questions come after it was revealed Taleb A, as he’s being called by German media, had been flagged to authorities before.

A doctor from Saudi Arabia, he moved to Germany in 2006.

German Christmas market attack – latest updates

The Saudi authorities reportedly warned German authorities about him several times.

And when he lived in northern Germany, he came into contact with police and the courts and threatened to do something that would attract international attention.

The federal interior minister, Nancy Faeser, has promised there will be a thorough investigation into the man who has been described as “Islamophobic” and a fan of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

“The task is to piece together all findings and paint a picture of this perpetrator, who does not fit any existing mould,” Ms Faeser said.

“This perpetrator acted in an unbelievably cruel and brutal manner – like an Islamist terrorist, although he was clearly ideologically hostile to Islam,” she added.

Far-right protests

Grief is weighing heavy on Magdeburg and the possibility this misery could have been avoided risks stirring up tensions.

Germany is heading towards a general election and there’s a chance the tragedy could be used for political point scoring.

On Saturday, as hundreds of the city’s residents gathered at a memorial for the victims, far-right protesters were meeting to mark the attack in a very different way.

Seemingly angered by the suspect’s migrant background, around 2,000 people, some wearing black balaclavas, held up a large banner with the word “remigration.”

Read more:
What we know about attack so far
Magdeburg in shock as it tries to make sense of the senseless

It’s a controversial term popular with supporters of the far-right who seek the mass deportation of immigrants and people deemed not ethnically German.

Police said some minor scuffles broke out.

‘Frightened’

Syrian-born Batoul Nayouf has lived in Magdeburg for five years.

She says many in the migrant community are feeling nervous.

“We are frightened. As immigrants, we are witnessing an extreme wave of hate speech. We are witnessing even violent acts against immigrants,” she says.

“When I was coming here on the tram, there was a German woman and a person of colour. She was actually staring at him until the point she spat on him.”

She understands many Germans are afraid, but hopes the community can come together as they mourn.

The people of Magdeburg are grief-stricken and exhausted, and they just want to understand why the Christmas market was attacked.

If they wait too long for answers, their fear may turn to anger.

And the closer Germany gets to the general election, the greater the risk that parties will try to seek support by exploiting those divisions.