Alleged attacker at Berlin Pride event shot dead by German police

Alleged attacker at Berlin Pride event shot dead by German police Mon 27 Jul 2026 at 4:50am In short: The alleged attacker who drove a mini-van into crowds at a Berlin Pride event is known to authorities and has a history of "membership of the Islamist scene", authorities say. German police shot dead the suspect, Abdul B, as he is known, who was born in Germany in 2005, on Sunday evening. One person died and 29 others were injured in the attack, which happened late on Saturday evening local time. German authorities say they have shot dead the suspect alleged to have been behind the wheel when a mini-van ploughed into a crowd near a huge pride gathering in Berlin, killing one and injuring 29. On Sunday evening, local time, Berlin police said the suspect, known as Abdul B, had been shot and killed during an operation at an allotment garden complex in the Berlin suburb of Spandau. The suspect had previously been identified as being of Lebanese descent and was born in Germany in 2005. "[The suspect] is said to have rushed toward our emergency forces with a stabbing weapon, after which police firearms were used by our SEK Berlin," Berlin Polizei posted on X. "Despite immediate resuscitation measures initiated by the Berlin Fire Department, he died at the scene." Authorities had earlier in the day announced a national manhunt for Abdul B, who German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said had connections to Islamic extremism. "Everything we see here indicates that we are dealing with an Islamist terrorist attack," Mr Dobrindt told reporters at the scene of Saturday's attack, where he said the van drove down a pavement, running over pedestrians. The attack happened in the Tiergarten park near the Brandenburg Gate at about 10pm local time on Saturday, not far from one of Europe's biggest annual LGBTQ pride celebrations, Christopher Street Day. The suspected perpetrator had "attracted attention in the past through a high number of criminal offences, through radicalisation, through membership of the Islamist scene", Mr Dobrindt said, adding that he was a German citizen with a Lebanese background, born in Germany in 2005. Suspect released from detention two months ago Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner, standing next to Mr Dobrindt, said the incident was "probably an Islamist terrorist attack on our way of living alongside one another, on our liberal democracy, our openness and our freedom". Berlin police identified the suspect as Abdul B, 21, and published his picture, asking the public for information on his whereabouts. Security sources told Reuters the suspect had been released from juvenile detention only two months ago. They said he was known to domestic intelligence and was among the hundreds of people classed as potentially dangerous, a label that usually leads to scrutiny or monitoring. After mowing people down with the vehicle, the alleged attacker injured some with a bladed weapon, thought to have been a machete, Mr Dobrindt said. The fire service said overnight that three of the injured were in a life-threatening condition. It was unclear whether the perpetrator had acted alone, since police said more than one person may have got out of the van. The Berlin broadcaster RBB said an Iranian who had been a passenger in the vehicle had been arrested. Reuters TV footage from the scene on Sunday morning showed a white mini-van crumpled into a tree. The newspaper Bild said it was a delivery vehicle that Abdul B had rented. German media reported that police had searched the suspect's Berlin apartment. 'Won't let it beat us down' In a vigil on Sunday afternoon, hundreds of people packed out the square in front of the Brandenburg Gate holding rainbow flags and flowers, with more gathering on the Unter den Linden avenue next to the square. Luka, a 23-year-old student, told AFP she hoped the attack would not be "instrumentalised" by the surging anti-immigration far-right ahead of elections in the capital and in several regions in September. At the scene of the attack itself, people left handwritten messages of condolence and support. Armin Duenhoelter, 49 from Wolfsburg, who works as a drag artist, was backstage at the main stage when the attack cut short the celebrations. He told AFP early on Sunday that he was still "shocked" but vowed to be back for next year's CSD. "We won't let it beat us down," he said. Series of ramming attacks in Germany The attack comes at a sensitive time for conservative chancellor Friedrich Merz's unpopular coalition government, which is going through a bruising cabinet reshuffle as critics accuse it of being ineffective. State elections take place in two months, with the far-right opposition party Alternative for Germany (AfD) campaigning on issues including immigration and security in a bid to secure control of a regional government for the first time. The AfD was quick to comment on the attack. "We will not allow religious extremists to divide our country with violence and intolerance!" AfD co-chief Tino Chrupalla said on X. Germany has experienced a series of vehicle attacks on crowds in recent years. In May, a man believed to have mental health issues drove into a pedestrian zone in Leipzig, killing two people and seriously injuring three. In 2016, Anis Amri, a Tunisian failed asylum seeker with links to Islamist militants, hijacked a truck, killed its driver and drove it into a busy Christmas market, killing 11 people and injuring dozens. He was shot dead by police in Italy four days later.