Berlin attack: Police arrest wrong perpetrator?

By the end of December 20, the number of victims killed in the truck attack on the Berlin Christmas market had reached 12.

The truck attack on a Berlin Christmas market on December 20 killed 12 people, including six who were identified as Germans. Forty-eight others were injured, 18 of them seriously.

According to initial information from the police, the main suspect in the attack is a 23-year-old Pakistani citizen who came to Germany in December 2015, moved to Berlin in February 2016, and was not officially granted a residence permit by Germany until June 2016.

The suspect was chased by a young man at the scene after the accident and was arrested by police shortly afterwards. However, German newspapers quoted German police as saying that the suspect denied being the driver who caused the Christmas market massacre.

According to German police, the person sitting next to the driver of the truck that caused the crime died in the car. This person was a Polish national and was not the person driving the truck at the time of the crime. This person died from being stabbed and shot.

Police have yet to find the murder weapon and gun. It is suspected that the driver killed the person sitting next to him before attacking the crowded Christmas market.

Berlin Christmas market attacked by truck, killing 12 people

On the afternoon of December 20 (local time), the police said they also did not find any guns on the suspect. At the same time, the suspect did not suffer any injuries caused by the fight. Because of these details, the German media began to raise suspicions that the 23-year-old suspect being arrested was not the perpetrator of the case.

Berlin police chief Klaus Kandt said it was still unclear whether the man was the driver. The suspect pool was wide, and based on the information available at the moment, police also admitted that the suspect in custody was most likely not the truck driver who committed the crime.

This raises further concerns that the real perpetrator of the case is still at large and has a gun. Berlin police are concerned that if the perpetrator is indeed out there, he could continue to pose a danger to society and a similar terrorist attack could happen again.

Holger Munch, head of the federal criminal police, said the armed perpetrator was still at large and called on people to be vigilant.

German police also suspect the attack was a terrorist attack linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS). This truck attack is the second of the year in Europe, after a truck attack on a crowded area in Nizza celebrating Bastille Day in France on July 14, killing 87 people. The shocking attack in France was concluded by authorities to be caused by IS.

Also on December 20, IS officially claimed responsibility for the attack. The organization said that the truck driver had targeted Christian citizens.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Berlin Mayor Michael Müller visited the scene of the attack and laid flowers in memory of the victims. Merkel also visited the Memorial Church near the site of the massacre to write a message of condolence to the victims and their families.

Mrs. Merkel said it would be terrible for all German people if the perpetrator was someone seeking asylum in Germany.

The right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party said Christianity was under attack. “The Christmas market was not a random target,” said Frauke Petry, head of the AfD. “It is not just an attack on our freedom and way of life, but also an attack on our Christian traditions. Germany is a country divided over immigration.”

The White House condemned the terrorist attack. President-elect Donald Trump called it a “horrific terrorist attack,” blaming ISIS and other Islamic terrorists for repeatedly killing Christians in their communities and places of worship.

Former UKIP leader Nigel Farage said "events like this will be the result of Mrs Merkel".

According to PLO