German police have admitted that they failed to act on warnings from Saudi Arabia about the potential danger of the Magdeburg Christmas market attack suspect.
Holger Münsch, head of Germany's Federal Criminal Police Agency (BKA), said the agency had received a tip from Riyadh about Taleb A., a Saudi refugee accused of ramming his car into a crowded Christmas market in November last year. I admitted that. At least five people were killed and hundreds more injured Friday evening.
According to WeltsMunsch said: “A legal proceeding was also initiated here. Subsequently, the police of Saxony-Anhalt carried out appropriate investigative measures.”
However, no further action was taken. The BKA chief also said the suspect “had various contacts with the authorities, insulted them and even threatened them,” but insisted that Munsch was “not known for committing violent acts.”
According to WeltsThe Saudi embassy in Berlin had repeatedly attempted to alert German authorities about Taleb's social media posts.
The suspected attacker reportedly made the following threats against Germany on social media: If Germany wants to kill us, we will slaughter them, die or proudly go to prison. ”
In another post, he is said to have vowed: There will be a huge price to pay…I assure you that 100% revenge will come soon. Even if it costs me my life. ”
Additionally, Saudi Arabia had asked Interpol to arrest Taleb in 2023 on suspicion of terrorist activities. However, Germany rejected the request because it believed it could be politically motivated on the Saudi side. der spiegel report.
The same Saudi woman also reportedly tried to alert authorities about Taleb, but her emails were sent to a German outpost in the US state of New Jersey, rather than to Berlin police. However, the woman's warnings were also reportedly ignored by the Berlin Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) and broadcaster NTV. report.
However, the suspect has come into contact with the law in the past, including in 2013 when he was found guilty of “disturbing the peace” and “threatening to commit a criminal offence” and was fined. It has also become clear that This was three years before Germany recognized his asylum and granted him a residence permit, and seven years after he first entered the country in 2006.
So was he to appear The day before the attack in Magdeburg, he was in court accused of abusing the emergency telephone system by making a fake emergency call to Berlin's fire department.
After being granted asylum for fear of persecution in his home country due to his alleged atheism, Taleb set up a website and service to help other ex-Muslims seek asylum in Germany, and his work led to traditional publications such as the BBC Featured in various media. .
He reportedly expressed anger at Germany's acceptance of Muslims from Syria and other countries while allegedly persecuting former Muslims from Saudi Arabia. Taleb also expressed anger at Berlin over the general Islamization of Europe and expressed sympathy for the anti-mass immigration party Alternative for Germany (AfD).
However, despite this, der spiegel reported Taleb publicly rejected the idea that he was a right-winger and openly declared that he considered himself a “leftist.”
The AfD also claimed Taleb was never a member of their party and never even applied to join their ranks.
Based on initial findings, senior prosecutor Horst Walter Noppens said the attack was likely motivated by “dissatisfaction with the treatment of Saudi refugees in Germany.”
Alice Weidel, the populist party's prime ministerial candidate, said Sunday: “The failures of the authorities that enabled the devastation in Magdeburg are shocking. Politicians use security services to target opposition parties and government critics, but they have no resources or resources to fend off real threats.” There is a lack of judgment.”
The government has also faced criticism from left-wing populist BSW leader Sarah Wagenknecht, who asked Interior Minister Nancy Feiser “why so many tips and warnings were ignored in advance” and It demands that he explain why he still had a residence permit to stay in the country. He is carrying out “threats against Germany and its people.”
