There was what seems to have been a terrorist attack on people visiting a Christmas Market in Berlin, Germany this evening. According to German television, at least 9 were killed when a large truck plowed through the crowd gathered at an iconic Christmas Market situated at the foot of the “Gedächtniskirche”, a memorial church dedicated to the horror and the victims of WW2.
I was out and about in Berlin this evening, in crowded spaces.
It’s a bizarre feeling when you realize this could have been you, when it is this close.
Edit: CBS News is reporting live:
www.cbsnews.com
Monday, Dec 19, 2016 · 8:41:54 PM +00:00 · Lawrence
It seems that they have now caught the driver, so final confirmation of it being a terror attack should likely be following shortly. I know the spot where this happened very well and it is unlikely that an accident would have caused this type of mayhem because it would be hard to even get that much speed going in christmas shopping traffic there. 9 dead, 60 injured so far.
Tuesday, Dec 20, 2016 · 8:15:47 AM +00:00
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Lawrence
3 additional victims died from their wounds in the intensive care unit at the hospital. The death toll is now 12.
It is now pretty clear that this was a terror attack and not an accident. The driver of the truck was captured so fast because a brave pedestrian shadowed him as he was fleeing the scene, communicating his position to police via cell phone. The driver seems to have stolen/hi-jacked the truck. He is a Pakistani national who entered the country as a “refugee” on 12/31/2015.
Tuesday, Dec 20, 2016 · 3:57:23 PM +00:00
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Lawrence
This will be the final update for the diary:
It seems that the Pakistani refugee probably was not the driver of the truck. Instead, the murder suspect is probably still at large and unarmed. Although it is now basically 100% clear that this was a terror attack, it is not yet known what the motivation/background to it is.