A Saudi Arabian psychiatrist, Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, goes on trial in Magdeburg, Germany, for a deadly van attack at a Christmas market last December. He allegedly killed six people and injured more than 300 when he drove into a crowded street.
The 51-year-old moved to Germany in 2006. Prosecutors accuse him of six murders, 338 attempted murders, and a “treacherous attack.” The victims included a nine-year-old boy and five women aged 45 to 75.
Because of the large number of victims, officials built a special courtroom for the case. It can hold 140 co-plaintiffs and 400 witnesses. Security around the trial is tight. Abdulmohsen will sit inside a bullet-proof booth.
Investigators say he acted out of anger over civil disputes and failed legal complaints. They found no signs of drugs or alcohol. He often posted online against Islam and supported Germany’s far-right AfD party. He called himself a “Saudi atheist.”
Despite his anti-Islam views, the AfD held a rally blaming “Islamist terror.” The party used the attack to spread its message. German authorities now face pressure for not stopping him earlier, despite his record of violent threats.
