“I strongly condemn last night’s barbaric attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany. In the Kurdistan Region, we stand with the German people during these difficult times,” Barzani said on X.
A 50-year-old Saudi Arabian medical doctor is the chief suspect, accused of ramming an SUV through a crowded street in the central German city of Magdeburg.
The motive behind the attack is currently unknown.
The suspect, identified by German media as Saudi doctor Taleb Al Abdulmohsen, has lived in the country since 2006 and holds a permanent residence permit.
He has expressed views critical of Islam and wrote “Germany wants to Islamize Europe” in his X bio.
“Our hearts and thoughts are with the families of the victims, and we wish the injured a swift recovery,” Barzani stated.
The attack marked the latest in a series of deadly attacks in Germany and western Europe that have fueled anti-immigration sentiment and garnered widespread support for right-wing parties. In Germany, the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has grown increasingly popular.
“When will this madness end?” AfD leader Alice Weidel said on X following the attack.
Almost eight years ago, a Tunisian man with links to ISIS delivered Germany its deadliest-ever jihadist attack when he drove a truck through a Christmas market in Berlin, killing 12 people and injuring 49 others.
In late August, a 26-year-old Syrian migrant fatally stabbed three people and injured eight more at a festival in the western German city of Solingen. The attack was claimed by ISIS. Berlin responded by tightening knife laws and reducing benefits for illegal migrants.
