Two people were killed and nearly 40 others were injured when an Afghan asylum seeker drove a car into a union march. The police said the driver confessed.
On Thursday morning, a 24-year-old Afghan refugee drove into a union demonstration in central Munich, killing a 2-year-old girl and her mother and injuring nearly 40 other people. The police say they are investigating whether the driver, who confessed to a deliberate attack, acted alone. The attack happened just 10 days before federal elections that have been focused on migration, and the crash could loom large in the campaign’s final days.
What happened during the attack?
At around 10:30 a.m. Thursday, officers in a police cruiser at the tail end of a union march in central Munich noticed a two-door Mini Cooper coming up from behind. The car sped up to pass the cruiser and plowed into the back of the marchers. Witnesses said they heard the Mini rev up as it drove into the crowd. The police fired a single shot as they went to arrest the driver.
Ambulances and a helicopter arrived at the scene. Police set up a temporary post in a nearby restaurant, where they asked witnesses to come forward, and set up an online portal for uploading any video or pictures of the attack. Officers also used dogs to search the car.
By evening the damaged car was lifted onto a flatbed tow truck and impounded.
Who were the victims?
On Saturday, a 2-year-old girl and her mother died at a hospital, the police said. Besides them, 37 people were injured in the attack, including several children.
The car plowed into a crowd of union members and supporters and their families. Verdi, one of the biggest unions in Germany, had called a one-day strike for some public sector workers, including those employed in day care, garbage collection and city administration.