Thousands of protestors took to the streets of Germany as they called for mass deportations following the Christmas market massacre which killed five people.
Mass demonstrations attracted 2,100 attendees in the Saxony-Anhault capital yesterday, with individuals holding up placards saying “Remigration Now”.
The demonstrators marched through the city, shouting: “Anyone who doesn’t love Germany should leave Germany”, “Migration kills” and “We must take back our cities, our villages and our homeland”.
Some of the demonstrators wore black balaclavas and were “aggressive”, which resulted in small clashes with the police.
Crowds of around 700 have congregated in a square in the Saxony-Anhault capital yesterday, with individuals holding up placards saying “Remigration Now”
REUTERS
Meanwhile, other attendees paid their respects to the those who died.
Friday night’s attack left hundreds injured and five dead, including one young boy, 9, and four women aged 52, 45, 75 and 67 according to police statements.
Approximately 40 people received critical or serious injuries.
At the scene, police arrested a 50-year-old Saudi psychiatrist with a history of anti-Islamic beliefs, who has lived in Germany for almost 20 years, although his motive has remained unclear.
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A magistrate has subsequently ordered the suspect into pretrial custody on charges of murder of five counts, in addition to multiple counts of murder and grievous bodily harm.
Authorities believe that the suspect drove through emergency exit points to access the Christmas market, before he accelerated into the crowds, hitting more than 200 people in a three-minute attack.
Magdeburg prosecutor Horst Nopens theorised that a factor which might have played a part in the suspect’s motivation was his frustration with Germany’s treatment of Saudi refugees.
Historically, the suspect had criticised Islam and had made several media appearances during 2019, detailing his work to support Saudi Arabians who had fled to Europe after rejecting Islam.
A BMW drove through the market’s barriers in the German city of Magdeburg, driving directly into the crowds just after 7pm on Friday night
REUTERS
Saudi Arabian authorities previously pointed out their concerns regarding the suspect’s social media posts to Germany, a Saudi source and a German security source has claimed.
The Christian Democrats, the main opposition party, as well as the Free Democrats, have demanded that the Government improve the national security apparatus, including better coordination between federal and state authorities.
“The background must be clarified. But above all, we must do more to prevent such offences, especially as there were obviously specific warnings and tips in this case that were ignored,” leader of the leftist BSW party Sahra Wagenknecht said, speaking to the Welt newspaper.
Meanwhile, Germany’s new left-wing party – the BSW – criticised unchecked immigration and has gathered a significant amount of support before the upcoming election in February.