Police kill suspect in deadly Berlin Pride assault

A man suspected of launching an assault on Berlin’s Christopher Street Day parade on Saturday that left one person dead and dozens injured has been killed by police, authorities have confirmed. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt earlier named the suspect as Abdul Ballout, a 21-year old German of Lebanese descent. Speaking at the crime scene in Berlin’s Tiergarten Park, Dobrindt told journalists that “everything we have seen so far indicates that we are dealing with an Islamist terrorist attack.” Authorities said Ballout was shot by police in a garden in the suburbs of the German capital on Sunday evening after 20 hours on the run. Police officials said they killed him when he attempted to attack officers with a bladed weapon. Ballout had rammed a van into a crowd on a path at the Tiergarten near the main venue of a weekend Pride event and then attacked people with a bladed weapon “believed to be a machete,” injuring many seriously, Dobrindt told journalists, confirming that one woman was killed and 29 people were hurt. He added that Ballout “had previously come to the attention of authorities because of numerous criminal offenses, his radicalization, and his association with the Islamist scene.” Dobrindt said the suspect’s radicalization had previously resulted in a conviction. According to a report by WELT (like POLITICO, part of the Axel Springer group), the suspect had been classified as a security threat and sentenced under the German Criminal Code for preparing a serious act of violence endangering the state. WELT also reported that a court had ordered Ballout to attend counseling as part of a de-radicalization program that aimed to prevent extremism. Dobrindt said it could not be ruled out that “such horrific terrorist attacks could inspire copycats,” although he said the risk was low. He advised Germany’s federal states to strengthen security measures to avoid similar events. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned the attack, and several European heads of state expressed their condolences. Merz and several members of his Cabinet attended a memorial on Sunday. Ahead of the service Merz told journalists: “These attacks have only one purpose. They seek to divide our society. They seek to take away what is most precious to us: our openness and our freedom.” He added: “We will not allow this poison of terrorism, this poison directed against our freedom, to spread farther through our society.” This story has been updated.