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<\/p>\nThe suspect in what German authorities described as an “Islamist terror attack” at Berlin’s Pride celebrations was shot dead by police following a major manhunt Sunday.<\/p>\n
At least one person was killed and 29 others injured in Saturday’s vehicle-ramming and stabbing attack at Tiergarten park, near the crowded LGBTQ+ event.<\/p>\n
The attack follows several incidents in recent years in which vehicles have been driven into crowds in Germany, fueling renewed debate over immigration amid rising support for the far right.<\/p>\n
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Police search a forest in Berlin after the attack at a Pride parade on Saturday evening. – Christian Mang\/Reuters<\/p>\n
Here’s what we know about the attack and suspect:<\/p>\n
A major manhunt<\/p>\n
German authorities launched a major manhunt after an attacker drove a van into a crowd near Saturday’s Pride celebrations before stabbing several people with a machete.<\/p>\n
Police identified the suspect as Abdul B., a 21-year-old German citizen of Lebanese background who was born in Germany in 2005. Police published photos of him, asking the public for any information on his whereabouts.<\/p>\n
Abdul B. was known to police “as a member of Islamic circles” in Berlin and sought to join the Islamic State group, the Associated Press reported, citing German prosecutors.<\/p>\n
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German police stand Sunday near a white van used in an attack Saturday evening on revelers in the Christopher Street Day Berlin pride parade. – Omer Messinger\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
The AP reported that Abdul B. traveled to Lebanon in 2025 intending to reach Syria and join the Islamic State group. He was arrested in Lebanon and served three months in prison for offenses including inciting religious and sectarian conflict.<\/p>\n
After he returned to Germany, a Berlin juvenile court handed him a suspended sentence of one year and 10 months for preparing a serious act of violence and publishing Islamic State propaganda. He was released pending appeal, the AP reported, citing court documents.<\/p>\n
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A police photo showing the suspect, named as Abdul B., 21. – Berlin Police<\/p>\n
The suspect was shot and killed by police during a confrontation at an allotment garden complex in Berlin’s Spandau district on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Police said officers located the suspect at the complex at around 6 p.m. local time. He allegedly rushed toward them with a stabbing weapon, prompting members of Berlin’s SEK tactical police unit to open fire.<\/p>\n
Despite immediate attempts by first responders to resuscitate him, he died at the scene, police said.<\/p>\n
‘Islamist terror attack’![\"Armed](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cnn_articles_875\/2ea4c25dbdae9f1d32d6f676f8fa2364.jpeg\"\/)
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Armed police special forces are seen near the sealed entrance to the Anhalter Bahnhof S-Bahn station in Berlin on Sunday. – Michael Ukas\/dpa\/AP<\/p>\n
On Saturday evening, a man driving a van carried out a deadly ramming and stabbing attack near Berlin’s largest LGBTQ+ event.<\/p>\n
The vehicle struck several people walking in Tiergarten park in central Berlin, near the route of the Pride parade but outside the official event area.<\/p>\n
Police said the attack began shortly before 10 p.m., when the van was driven into the park.<\/p>\n
“There was a dull bang. \u2026 After that, there were a few noises,” an eyewitness said.<\/p>\n
“At first, we couldn’t make out what the screams were, because of the party, the music and the atmosphere. We only realized later exactly what was going on, when the police cleared the park with machine guns and asked us to go home,” the witness said.<\/p>\n
The vehicle was later found abandoned after having crashed into a tree.<\/p>\n
In a post on X after the attack, police called on everyone to leave the area immediately as ambulances and firefighters attended to the victims.<\/p>\n
Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner said a woman killed in the attack was a Polish citizen who was in the city with her daughter, AP reported.<\/p>\n
CNN has approached Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for comment.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters on Sunday afternoon, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt described the incident as an “Islamist terror attack.”<\/p>\n
Dobrindt said the suspect used the vehicle as a weapon before attacking other people with what was believed to be a machete.<\/p>\n
Police said Sunday that none of the injured remain in a life-threatening condition.<\/p>\n
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned the incident as a “heinous act” and an attack on German society.<\/p>\n
Pride celebrations interrupted<\/p>\n
Before the attack, people had celebrated peacefully, marching through the city for hours, dancing to loud music and cheering as around 80 floats traveled along the parade route.<\/p>\n
Berlin has long had a reputation as being a global capital for LGBTQ+ rights. The city hosted its first Christopher Street Day parade, also known as Berlin Pride, in 1979. The annual celebration, one of the most influential Pride events in Europe, draws around 1 million supporters and advocates for the rights, visibility and equal treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer people.<\/p>\n
Alfonso Pantisano, the Berlin state government’s LGBTQ affairs commissioner, wrote on Instagram in the wake of the attack: “To you, \u200cmy dear community: I know \u2060that many of you are afraid right now. I won’t sugarcoat it \u2014 I am, too. But you are not alone in this fear, in your grief, and in your anger.”<\/p>\n
German rapper Ikkimel, who performed on the opening night of Berlin Pride at the Brandenburg Gate on Friday, also posted a message of solidarity on Instagram: “Love is never the mistake, fear and hate never an answer,” she wrote.<\/p>\n
“Please please stay strong. I will always stand up for us.”<\/p>\n
Delivering an address Sunday in the aftermath of the attack, Merz promised there would be consequences and said Germany would remain united despite its political differences. “We will think about consequences; we will defend our freedom,” the chancellor said.<\/p>\n
Earlier Sunday, Merz wrote on X: “Hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world were peacefully celebrating at Christopher Street Day. They wanted us to treat each other with kindness and tolerance.” He continued, “We are open and freedom-loving \u2014 and we will preserve and defend that.” He pledged that the attack would be investigated and pursued with the “utmost severity.”<\/p>\n
Wegner expressed shock, saying that “following a peaceful and vibrant Pride parade, the rally for a tolerant and peaceful Berlin was attacked in the most brutal manner.”<\/p>\n
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Mayor of Berlin Kai Wegner speaks to the media after the attack at Tiergarten park. – Christian Mang\/Reuters<\/p>\n
He added, “Berlin is the city of freedom \u2014 and our freedom has been attacked in the most horrific way today. My thoughts are with the victims, their families and friends.”<\/p>\n
The city also activated a crisis hotline for people unable to locate friends or family members.<\/p>\n
Overall, more than 2,200 police officers have been deployed across Berlin since Saturday morning to protect the Pride parade and other LGBTQ+ events in the city, Reuters reported.<\/p>\n