Magdeburg attack offers AfD fertile ground despite suspect’s backing for party

“I’m sad, I still am,” said Eidwicht, standing at a Christmas market near where the car drove through on Friday, killing five people and injuring more than 200 others.

“My grandson was here. I called him because my son told me something happened here. And he didn’t answer for two hours.”

There is a lot of sadness here – and anger directed at the government and the immigrants. “It can’t go on like this,” Eidwicht said.

A 50-year-old Saudi refugee has been arrested in connection with the attack but his motive is unknown.

Officials said Taleb Al-Abdulmohsen was an “unknown” attacker. German Christmas markets and festivals have come under attack in the past, particularly from Muslim extremists.

He has been described as anti-Islamic and has also shown support on television for the far-right Alternative for Germany party, praising the party for fighting the same enemy “to protect Germany”.

The AfD did not comment on the matter. The party held a rally in Magdeburg later on Monday where co-leader Alice Weidel called for changes “so we can live in safety again”. The crowd responded by calling for their “removal” according to media outlets.

His party is currently riding high in the polls ahead of the February 23 general election, particularly in states like Saxony-Anhalt in the former East Germany.

The attack has brought up two major electoral issues, security and immigration, and the AfD’s figures have shown both since the attack.

Although the suspect said a lot of anti-Islam, the head of the AfD in Sachsen-Anhalt, Martin Reichardt, said that “the attack in Magdeburg shows that Germany is being pulled by politics and religions that originated in another country.”.

Writing on X, Weidel said that the government’s discussion of new security laws after the attack “must not undermine the fact that Magdeburg would not have been possible without uncontrolled migration. The government must protect its citizens by means of a policy of banning migration and continuous deportations !”

Protests also took place, with anti-apartheid groups accusing the AfD of using the scheme.

David Begrich of Miteinander eV said that people in the city need a chance to relax.

“In areas where immigrants are very worried about being made a scapegoat,” he said. “We don’t want that. We want to build harmony among all people, but at the same time we listen to the voice of people who are now afraid and uncertain.”

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier appealed for international unity, saying “a dark shadow is hanging over this Christmas”.

“Hate and violence must not be the last words. Let’s not let ourselves be divided. Let’s stand together!” he said.

Germans are questioning how the attack could have happened, when security had already been increased at Christmas markets and when authorities had clearly investigated the suspect several times in recent years.

The threat he issued was seen as “very vague”, according to some reviews, while one information against him in September 2023 seems to have fallen through the cracks.

In another apparent security failure, the driver also managed to drive through a gap that was left for an emergency where it had to be filled by a police car.

Christmas market vendors are now allowed to return, to dispose of old food and to remove their equipment and stock.

No one I approached wanted to talk to the BBC. Everything is raw.

There has also been hostility towards the media in the past few days, especially after around 2,000 people took part in a right-wing protest in Magdeburg on Saturday night.

The German Press Association said there had been violence and threats against journalists and called for more police protection.

The BBC team joined mourners who gathered in Cathedral Square to pay attention to the victims of the attack and many who spoke to them said it was important to show solidarity at a time of dire need.

But one woman wrote a warning. There are “some Nazis here, who don’t like the press,” he said. “Please be careful.”