Taleb Al Abdulmohsen has been identified in several news reports as the suspect in a car attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, last night which killed four and injured 200 others.
According to the German media, the 50-year-old perpetrator had been living in Germany since 2006 and had permanent residency in the country.
It was reported that he worked as a doctor in the city of Bernburg and his social media accounts contained Islamophobic messages, support for the far-right AfD party, with outlandish claims that German authorities were “chasing Saudi asylum seekers to destroy their lives” and “Germany wants to Islamize Europe.”
He had posted on social media, expressing “concerns about the rise of Islam in Germany.”
He wrote in June a post about German police using “dirty tactics” against him and other critics of Islam to “destroy their anti-Islam activism.”
The attack occurred on Friday in the popular Christmas market at Magdeburg’s city centre. Videos on social media showed a dark car speeding into the crowd, sending people fleeing in panic and causing chaos at the festive gathering.
The perpetrator was arrested after the attack.
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Taleb Al-Abdulmohsen is a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia, specifically from the city of Hofuf. He moved to Germany in 2006 and was granted asylum and recognised as a refugee in 2016. He is a specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy.
He has been described as an ex-Muslim and a vocal critic of Islam. He was an advocate for the far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD) and expressed anti-Islam sentiments on social media, including support for figures like Elon Musk and Tommy Robinson.
His online activity included accusations against German authorities for what he perceived as their role in “Islamizing Europe.”
