A massive manhunt is under way in Germany after a suspected "Islamist terror attack" at a Berlin Pride event on Saturday night
One woman is dead and at least 29 injured after a van drove into a crowd - multiple people were then stabbed with a blade that "might have been a machete"
A suspect has been named by police as Abdul Ballout; a German citizen of Lebanese background who was known to police and had previously "committed a number of crimes"
"We cannot rule out the possibility of copycat attacks," warns Germany's interior minister, as he announces that the country's threat level will be raised
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says extremists "have no place in our society", vowing to do everything in the government's power to see justice served
Berlin should have woken up this morning with a massive hangover after a great party. Instead, it woke up to the sobering realisation of yet another deadly attack hitting the country, writes our reporter in Berlin
The suspect in the Berlin Pride attack has reportedly been shot and killed during a police operation at a garden complex, German media are reporting.
Reports say it occured in Spandau, a borough in the west of Berlin.
As we reported earlier, suspect Abdul Ballout had been convicted and given a prison sentence that he had not yet served.
Here's a timeline of the relevant background:
June 16 and 24, 2024: Ballout publishes prohibited Islamic State propaganda on Instagram. Later, the prosecutor's office says, he allegedly "developed the desire to join the armed struggle of ISIS".
20 May 2025: He travels to Lebanon via Turkey, with the intention of heading to Syria and joining the Islamic State group.
24 July 2025: He is arrested in Lebanon and sentenced to three months in prison for incitement to religious and sectarian conflict.
17 November 2025: Ballout returns to Germany after being released, and is arrested at Berlin Brandenburg Airport.
12 May 2026: The Tiergarten District Court sentences him to one year and 10 months' imprisonment for "preparing a serious act of violence endangering the state". The decision is deferred for six months.
3 July 2026: His address in Berlin-Schöneberg is searched based on suspicion of a violation of Germany's Weapons Act, but only a toy gun is found.
25 July 2026: Ballout allegedly seriously injures several people in a vehicle ramming attack in Berlin, and a number more "with a bladed weapon".
Image source, Berlin policeWe can now bring you more on suspect Abdul Ballout, after the Berlin public prosecutor's office released details about his previous criminal history.
Ballout, a German citizen born and raised in Berlin, with a Lebanese family background, has had multiple run-ins with the law.
In February 2022, according to the release, he was convicted by juvenile court for assault and robbery after being found guilty of assaulting a victim in the yard of a Berlin high school in September 2019.
He was also convicted of robbing a victim of a pair of headphones in October 2020 at Innsbrucker Platz, with an accomplice.
The public prosecutor's office in Berlin has released a detailed update on Abdul Ballout, who police earlier named as a suspect.
The statement says it is alleged that Ballout struck people with a rented vehicle in the Tiergarten area last night.
It says one woman died later in the evening, after the suspect allegedly carried out the ramming attack, then injured several with a bladed weapon.
We're going through the statement, and will bring you more on the suspect in our next post.
Image source, Getty ImagesA damaged van, believed to be the vehicle used in the attack, is removed from Berlin's Tiergarten park
Katie Williams
Live reporter
Image source, ReutersThe manhunt continues following a suspected Islamist terror attack on Berlin Pride last night, in which one woman was killed and at least 29 people were injured.
At least one person is believed to have rammed a van into a crowd before launching a knife attack with "some type of blade" - possibly a machete.
Officials have named Abdul Ballout - a German citizen of Lebanese background - as a suspect, and multiple others were taken into custody on Sunday, according to German media.
Ballout was known to police and had previously "committed a number of crimes", says Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, who described the incident as a suspected "Islamist terror attack".
Photos show the police search in action throughout the day; more than a thousand officers have been working on the case.
There has been an outpouring of grief throughout Sunday, with crowds gathering for a vigil and laying floral tributes. One Pride attendee says the event "will never be the same after the attack".
Speaking to press earlier, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany would not allow the "poison of terrorism" to affect its society, and promised to "act decisively but also thoughtfully".
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is now visiting the scene of the attack in Berlin's Tiergarten park.
He holds a white rose, accompanied by other ministers, including Interior Minister Alexander Dobrint.
Earlier, he spoke outside a church service that paid tribute to victims, where he pledged to "defend the freedom and openness of our lives".
Image source, Reuters
Image source, ReutersPeople injured in last night’s attack are no longer in a life-threatening condition, according to German media.
Outlets including the public service news programme Tagesschau, citing a police spokesperson, report that police have given the "all-clear" regarding those who were seriously injured.
AFP news agency also quotes German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as saying that none of those injured in the Berlin Pride attack are now "in mortal danger".
Earlier, a Berlin fire department spokesman said three people had suffered life-threatening injuries. Twenty-nine people were hurt, according to Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt.
Michael Steininger
Image source, Getty ImagesThe sign, translated, reads: "From grief, to anger, to resistance"
It is day one after what is now being described by Germany's interior minister as an "Islamist terrorist attack" on Berlin’s Pride parade last night.
The queer community, which had turned up in huge numbers yesterday, is reeling - and some of them returned to the Brandenburg Gate today for an impromptu demonstration.
The speakers did not hold back with their grief and their anger.
They condemned extremism in all its manifestations, but they also criticised the government for a lack of support, singling out recent budget cuts for queer organisations.
The addressee of that message happened to be right on the other side of the gate - Chancellor Friedrich Merz gave a statement in which he stressed that Germans would not be intimidated by acts of terrorism, and that they would defend their liberal and tolerant way of life.
German Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig says that the federal public prosecutor general will take over the investigation into Saturday night's attack.
"Of course, we will pursue those responsible with the full force of the law and bring them to justice," she says, adding that the interior minister "has already stated that this was an Islamist attack".
The federal prosecutor general is responsible for prosecutions in serious cases, including terrorism.
Police have taken several people into custody in relation to the attack, according to German media.
Citing police spokesman Florian Nath, outlets including Die Zeit report that some of those taken into custody have now been released, while others remain held.
Nath reportedly told journalists that if police cannot assign suspicions of a crime to those detained, then they must be released within 48 hours.
As we heard from police earlier, it's still unclear if the suspect named as Abdul Ballout is believed to have acted alone, or with accomplices.
People have been leaving flowers, candles, and messages near the scene of the attack in Berlin's Tiergarten park.
One sign reads: "wir sind wütend traurig", which translates to "we are angry and sad".
Another says "liebe siegt" ("love conquers all").
Image source, Reuters
Image source, EPA/Shutterstock
Image source, EPA/Shutterstock
Image source, ReutersNew pictures from Berlin show the van believed to have been used in the attack being loaded onto a truck.
Earlier images from the scene showed the vehicle in Tiergarten park, where it appeared to have collided with a tree.
Police say the suspect used a vehicle to ram a crowd in Saturday night's attack, which killed one woman and injured at least 29 others.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Getty ImagesWe're now listening to the service being held inside St Mary's Church in Berlin - Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke briefly outside a short while ago and sits watching.
To a full congregation, the priest encourages those in attendance to "work against hate and not let that deter us".
He says they need to "be here for love, to think of the victims of the attack" and their loved ones.
The priest explains people will have a chance to light a candle and include a personal message.
You can watch live above.
A hospital in Berlin has confirmed that four of the people injured in the attack on Saturday are being treated in intensive care units.
In a post on social media, the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin says it treated eight people injured in the attack and that four patients have been discharged.
It also confirmed no one in the hospital is in a life-threatening condition.
Earlier, Germany's interior minister confirmed at least 29 people had been injured in the attack.
Image source, Getty ImagesMerz then addresses participants in Pride events, appealing to them not to be intimidated.
"These attacks only have one goal," he says: to "divide our society" and take away "openness and freedom".
Officials will do everything in their power to arrest the perpetrator or perpetrators, Merz says, adding that they will "act decisively but also thoughtfully".
"These extremists have no place in our society," he goes on, saying Germany will not allow the "poison of terrorism" to affect its society.
"We will defend the freedom and openness of our lives," the chancellor says.
Merz has now finished his brief remarks.
Merz begins by saying it is a "very sad occasion" that brings people here.
His thoughts are with the victims and loved ones of the "Islamist terrorist attack last night".
He wishes a speedy recovery to those injured.
The chancellor then thanks the first responders for their "exemplary" fast response.
"They prevented things from getting worse yesterday," he adds.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is delivering an update following last night's deadly attack in Berlin.
He's speaking in front of St. Mary's Church, where a service is being held in tribute to the attack's victims.
You can watch live above, and we'll bring you updates here.
New pictures from Berlin show police searching an apartment, which Reuters and AFP say is connected to the Pride attack on Saturday night.
The property is on Bissingzeile street in the Tiergarten neighbourhood, not far from where the attack happened.
The search for the suspect is still under way. Police have named him as Abdul Ballout, but say it remains unclear whether the alleged attacker had accomplices.
More than a thousand officers have been working on the case since last night, police say.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Getty ImagesArmed police stand near the scene of the attack in Berlin on Saturday night
Officials revealed more details about last night's attack in a press conference a short while ago. Here's what we now know about how it unfolded.
The attack started shortly before 22:00 local time (21:00 BST).
The suspect first "rammed into a crowd with a car", killing one person and severely injuring others, according to Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt.
The suspect then launched a knife attack with "some type of blade" - Dobrindt says it might have been a machete. Other victims were "severely injured" in the knife attack.
The incident did not take place inside the Pride event but a few hundred metres away, Dobrindt says.
Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner says there was a "high level of security", meaning the perpetrator wasn't able to access the festival site itself.
One person has died and 29 are injured, some of them seriously, Dobrindt says.
Image source, Berlin PoliceAbdul Ballout has been named as the main suspect in the Berlin Pride attack that killed a woman and injured at least 29 others.
Here is what we know about him so far:
