Tributes paid to child killed in German Christmas market attack

Tributes have been paid to a nine-year-old boy who was killed in an attack on a German Christmas market.

André Gleissner died after a car drove into a crowd of shoppers at the market in Magdeburg on Friday evening, a local fire department said.

A social media post, reportedly attributed to André's mother, called him "my little teddy bear" and said he would "always live in our hearts".

Four women, aged 45, 52, 67 and 75, also died in the attack. Authorities are holding a suspect in pre-trial detention on counts of murder, attempted murder and dangerous bodily harm.

Another tribute came from a fire department in nearby Schöppenstedt.

In a statement it said André was a member of the children's fire brigade in Warle, which is about an hour's drive from Magdeburg.

The children's fire brigade is a youth organisation open to kids aged six to 12 with an interest in firefighting.

"Our thoughts are with André's relatives, who we also want to support during this difficult time," the statement said.

The Lower Saxony youth fire brigade also paid tribute to the nine-year-old.

"Our condolences go out to his family, his friends and everyone who was close to him," it said in a statement.

"We stand by their side in these difficult times and express our deepest sympathy," it added.

An online fundraiser reportedly set up to raise money for André's family has received more than €60,000 (£49,900) in donations so far.

The attack on Friday left at least 200 people injured, with some left in a critical condition.

The four women who were also killed have not yet been identified.

The car ploughed into the crowded market via an emergency vehicle access lane about 19:00 local time (18:00 GMT) on Friday, police said.

Eyewitnesses described jumping out of the car's path, fleeing or hiding. Unverified social media footage showed the vehicle speeding through a pedestrian walkway between stalls.

Police said the driver then returned to the road and was forced to stop in traffic, where he was arrested.

Around 100 police, medics and firefighters attended the scene, according to city officials.

A 50-year-old man has been remanded in custody on suspicion of five counts of murder, multiple attempted murders and dangerous bodily harm, police said.

The suspect has been identified in local media as Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a Saudi-born psychiatrist who arrived in Germany in 2006.

The motive behind the attack remains unclear but authorities say they believe the driver acted alone.

German authorities are facing questions about security after reports they were warned last year that the suspect could pose a threat.

The Saudi foreign ministry said it warned the German government about al-Abdulmohsen's extremist views, but received no response.

Later, the head of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Münch, told public broadcaster ZDF that his office had received a notice from Saudi Arabia in November 2023. He said local police took appropriate investigative measures, but the matter was unspecific.

He added that the suspect "had various contacts with authorities, insulted them and even made threats, but he was not known for violent acts".

Past investigations would need to be revisited, Münch said.