The man accused of killing six people when he drove his car into a crowd at a Christmas market in the eastern German city of Magdeburg last December said on Monday that he was the one driving the car during the incident.
Shortly before the hearing on 6 counts of murder and 338 counts of attempted murder ended for lunch, Taleb A. asked to be able to address the court to answer the charges.
What did the suspect say?
Taleb A. said he would like to speak about his crime for “hours, maybe days.”
Earlier this year, he shocked several victims by sending them letters from jail apologizing for his actions.
Judge Dirk Sternberg said he would have a reasonable time to address the court after it resumed at 2 p.m. local time.
“I was the one driving the car,” the suspect said on the first day of his high-security trial, one of the largest trials in Germany’s post-war history.
What are the court conditions?
A temporary court building has been set up to accommodate hundreds of people attending the trial, including witnesses, plaintiffs and members of the press. It will be destroyed after the trial is over.
During the proceedings the suspect will sit in a glass cage for his safety.
The car attack, which killed five women and a child, shocked Germany and prompted dozens of similar markets across the country to tighten security measures, including car barriers.
338 people were injured in the attack on a crowded Christmas market.
What is the background of the suspect?
Taleb A., 51, originally from Saudi Arabia. Was in Germany since 2006 and was a doctor in the city of Bernburg.
He was taken into custody immediately after the attack and has remained in custody since then.
Around 180 victims and relatives will be co-plaintiffs in the case.
The Magdeburg Regional Court has scheduled approximately 50 trial days until March 12, 2026.
Taleb was a vocal critic of Islam and what he saw as Germany’s lax immigration policies.
He also supported several conspiracy theories. Prosecutors say she expressed her anger online, and then was attacked out of “resentment and frustration.”
His goal was “to kill as many people as possible,” he said. He faces life in prison.
Edited by: Dmytro Lyubenko