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A local fire department has paid tribute to a nine-year-old who was killed in an attack on a German Christmas market.
According to the Schöppenstedt fire department, André Gleißner died after a car drove into a crowd at the market in Magdeburg on Friday evening.
A statement said he was a member of the children’s fire department in Warle, about an hour’s drive from Magdeburg.
Four women aged 45, 52, 67 and 75 were also killed in the attack. Authorities are Detaining a suspect in custody for murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm.
“Our thoughts are with André’s relatives, whom we want to support during this difficult time,” the fire department said in a statement.
The Lower Saxony youth fire brigade also paid tribute to the nine-year-old.
“Our condolences go out to his family, friends and everyone who was close to him,” it said in a statement.
“We stand by them in these difficult times and express our deepest condolences,” it continued.
More than 200 people were injured in Friday’s attack, with some in critical condition.
The four women who were also killed have not yet been identified.
Police said the car sped into the crowded market through an entry lane for emergency vehicles around 7:00 p.m. local time (6:00 p.m. GMT) on Friday.
Eyewitnesses described how they jumped out of the way of the car, fled or hid. Unconfirmed social media footage showed the vehicle speeding through a pedestrian walkway between stalls.
According to police, the driver then returned to the road and was forced to stop in traffic where he was arrested.
According to the city administration, around 100 police officers, paramedics and firefighters were on site.
A 50-year-old man was taken into custody on suspicion of five murders, several attempted murders and grievous bodily harm, police said.
The suspect was identified in local media as Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a Saudi-born psychiatrist who came to Germany in 2006.
The motive behind the attack remains unclear, but authorities believe the driver acted alone.
German authorities are facing questions about security after they were reportedly warned last year that the suspect could pose a threat.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said it had warned the German government about al-Abdulmohsen’s extremist views but received no response.
