51-year-old psychiatrist Taleb Jawad al-Abdulmohsen has admitted to ploughing a rented SUV through the Christmas market in the Eastern German city of Magdeburg on December 20, 2024, killing six people and wounding more than 300.
On Monday, November 10th, the trial opened with prosecutors accusing Abdulmohsen of setting out “to kill a large number of people”, motivated by anger over “supposed insults and frustration.” Abdulmohsen also made an opening statement in which he admitted: “I am the one who drove the car.” He is charged with six counts of murder and 338 counts of attempted murder, and could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.
On Tuesday, November 11th, the second day of the trial during which he has given at times rambling statements, he said he was on a hunger strike, without giving an explanation as to why.
“I have been on a hunger strike since yesterday, I want to do it for three weeks,” he told the court.
Presiding judge Dirk Sternberg said that since Abdulmohsen has already given an opening statement, the trial could continue in his absence if the hunger strike means he cannot come to court.
“It is up to you whether you want to take part in proceedings or not,” Sternberg told the defendant.
However, he expressed no remorse and the rest of his statement largely consisted of incoherent and unrelated diatribes about politicians, violence against women in Saudi Arabia, religious topics, and accusations that the Magdeburg police had covered up the truth.
Some cities have cancelled their Christmas markets because of the cost of anti-terrorism measures. On Monday, November 10th, the mayor of Magdeburg, Simone Borris, told a council meeting that state authorities had refused permission for the city’s Christmas market to open for now due to security concerns.
