Key events
The local newspaper Solinger Tageblatt has reported that authorities urged people to leave central Solingen in the wake of the attack, and that one of the festival organisers, Philipp Müller, said on a stage that emergency workers were fighting for the lives of nine people.
Rolling news channel NTV showed a video of Müller asking the crowd not to “panic” and to be careful leaving the premises because the attacker was still at large.
The attack happened at a square in the city centre hosting the Festival of Diversity, which began on Friday and was supposed to run through to Sunday, with several stages in central streets offering attractions such as live music, cabaret and acrobatics.
Tens of thousands of visitors had been expected over the course of the festival
Music acts were being performed at the time of the attack.
Local mayor Tim Kurzbach wrote on Facebook: “Tonight we are all in Solingen in shock, fright and great sadness. We all wanted to celebrate our city anniversary together and now we have to mourn the dead and injured.”
He said he was praying for all those who are still fighting for their lives and thanked emergency and security services for their work.
Opening summary
Police in the German city of Solingen have said three people have been killed and four seriously wounded in an an attack on festival-goers celebrating the city’s 650th anniversary.
An earlier report from German news agency dpa cited unidentified police sources as saying the weapon was believed to be a knife.
No one has been arrested. The Festival of Diversity began on Friday and was supposed to run through Sunday.
We will bring you the latest updates here.