after lawmakers vote in favour of a budget deal for three months. and in sport — yet another defeat for english champions manchester city — they lose 2—1 against aston villa. german police say a nine year old is among five people killed in the christmas market attack in the town of magdeburg. along with those five deaths, city officials say two hundred people have been injured, many seriously. people have come to flowers at the scene. we can now name the suspect in the attack as taleb al—abdulmohsen — he is a 50—year—old doctor from saudi arabia. officials say he appears to have been motivated by resentment at the treatment of refugees in germany — rather than religion.

and they believe he was acting alone. chancellor scholz has visited the scene. he's called what happened in magdeburg a �*terrible act'. there are questions about security after it emerged the suspect drove through an entrance reserved for ambulances and official vehicles. let's go live to magdeburg — where a commemoration service is taking place near the scene of the attack. it's just getting under way now. the statement by the hacker to community says we're deeply affected by the attack on the christmas market, yesterday. we mourn the loss of the victims and their think about their relatives with what we want to observe silence at this time that's why we're canceling all the cathedral tours for the same goes for the choir in the cathedral and 7pm local time, that is right now we will hold a vigil at the cathedral for the victims.

anna foster has been at the scene and sent this report. flickering candles have replaced the twinkling christmas lights here. in magdeburg, there's shock, disbelief and questions about how something like this could happen. 2a hours ago, this market was packed with people, but the laughter and celebration was cut devastatingly short when a car sped through the crowds, killing five people and injuring 200 more. the car, sped past us and the police ran after it. other emergency services arrived, evacuated people and diverted traffic. people were still panicking and screaming. we now know it used the rescue entrance to get into the square, a gap deliberately left for ambulances to have access. police say the deadly rampage lasted three minutes.

armed police quickly arrested a man, a doctor originally from saudi arabia but living here for nearly 20 years. his motive is still under question. as things stand at the moment, it looks as if the background to the crime could have been disgruntlement with the way saudi arabian refugees are treated in germany. but what exactly is behind it is still under investigation. emotions are running high here. alongside the sadness there's an undercurrent of anger against politicians who some feel didn't make this place safe enough. the german chancellor, 0laf scholz, came to lay a white rose and promised an investigation. as specialist police continue their investigations just a few metres away, the collection of flowers and candles here just keeps on growing. this bitter december wind is not keeping people away. they want to be here. they want to be together and to remember the friends that they've lost.

christmas feels very different here now. the stalls won't be reopening. the focus turned instead on remembering the victims, helping the survivors and making sure a tragedy like this can't happen again. what about the attacker taleb al—abdulmohsen? what about the attacker taleb al—abdulmohsen? james jackson is a journalist — he was contacted by the alleged attacker online. it was quite a shock to me, to be honest. as first reports were coming out about this particular individual, the suspect i went to look and he sort of followed me. i saw that he is also message me in august. my report was on a story about police misbehavior in berlin. then he sent me his message, this video which is made to look as if it's elon musk talking about the case of the suspect, his grievances and even talked about some

politicians that i'm in contact with, arabic politicians in germany, some left—wing and other ex—muslims and he was saying it is all the conspiracy look up the far left and the muslims are working together and they are even under minding the ex—muslim community. some clear indications of a paranoid conspiratorial worldview in my view for that which is also something that leading german politicians have commented on. james jackson. let's speak now to our security correspondent frank gardner who's been looking into potential warnings about the suspect. what potential warnings are the saudi saying they gave german authorities?— authorities? they say they've assed authorities? they say they've passed four _ authorities? they say they've passed four modes, - authorities? they say they've passed four modes, these i authorities? they say they've | passed four modes, these are official diplomatic notifications they sent from saudi arabia to germany. i don't know the dates but they sent three of them to german intelligence agencies. 0ne sent three of them to german intelligence agencies. one of

them to the german foreign minister warning they say about taleb al—abdulmohsen�*s extreme views that he held there are two sides to this. there is a view taken by at least one respected counterterrorism expert that i know of who is saying that this is something of a bit of a disinformation campaign, he's even saying, that this is the saudi is trying to blacken his name. it's pretty black right now, obviously. but trying to basically say that here was somebody who is dangerous back then put it why? because he was allegedly trying to help a number of people who had left saudi arabia and were either dissident, political dissident or people who are trying to turn their back on their islamic faith. saudi arabia being very much a monolithic one faith country, islam. and this man taleb al—abdulmohsen had left his religion of his birthplace. in islam you are

not supposed to leave your religion. and he has turned into somebody that the german interior minister was referring to as islamic pope. and certainly some of the text, the two easy posted that are being reported in the german media are exactly that, islam or phobic. there are two sides to this. it does seem that the saudi authorities were concerned about this man's extreme views. d0 concerned about this man's extreme views.— concerned about this man's extreme views. ~ ., ., extreme views. do we know what the german _ extreme views. do we know what the german authorities _ extreme views. do we know what the german authorities did - extreme views. do we know what the german authorities did with l the german authorities did with those warnings the saudi say they gave? know to what extent german security services were weren't monitoring him? zero according _ weren't monitoring him? zero according to _ weren't monitoring him? zero according to the _ weren't monitoring him? zero according to the salaries. - weren't monitoring him? ler according to the salaries. they did absolutely nothing about it. there was no response. there are some reports of german media that the salaries have made attempts to bring him back to kind of extradite him,

which germany resisted. germany of course is very much... if you remember back in 2015 after germany has been a refuge for a very large numbers, roughly one and a half million at least refugees from the middle east ofjust refugees from the middle east of just syria refugees from the middle east ofjust syria and other countries as well. something which is been a very polarizing factor in german domestic politics that is helped to give rise to the ike paternity for deutschland the german far—right party that has gained strength in popularity in the polls. their entire message is that germany should not be a refuge for so many of these people, that it is changing the character of germany. that seems to be something that this man taleb al—abdulmohsen agreed with them about. that he had a conspiracy theory that the german government was somehow in league with islamic extremist, with china islamized

germany. these are all things at the investigators are looking into. let's be clear, none of this in any way justifies what he did. whatever conclusions they come to, they still haven't referred to this as a terrorist attack for the but whatever conclusions they come to there are obviously quite a complex back story going on here. only bits of which are starting to come to light now. which are starting to come to light nova— which are starting to come to liuht now. , . ., , ,, ., light now. they have as we know been christmas _ light now. they have as we know been christmas market - light now. they have as we know been christmas market attacks l been christmas market attacks before in germany, elsewhere in europe. how different to the usual profile of an attack or in a suspect is this particular individual? he in a suspect is this particular individual?— individual? he is unusual in the sense _ individual? he is unusual in the sense that _ individual? he is unusual in the sense that he's - individual? he is unusual in the sense that he's a - individual? he is unusual in | the sense that he's a doctor for a psychiatrist who practised about 25 miles away. therefore should have taken a hippocratic oath, do no harm.

doctors are not supposed to hurt people for any reason. yet he has done quite the opposite. that is unusual. he is 50, which is much older... anyway we have to be careful we don't compare apples and pears. previous car renting attacks in europe had tended to be carried out by young male jihadists inspired by islamic state. that does not appear to be the case at all here. quite the opposite. this is somebody who appears to be anti—islamic or islamic pope. it is really confusing a lot of experts on this. i think in terms of the physical security that was around these things, the german authorities were very aware, every federalized place where there is a lot of power vested in individual states. so rather

than having one big all—powerful m15 or fbi equivalent, a lot of power is divested and placed in individual states, they clearly missed the fact that there was an access route where he was able to drive his bmw through the gaps in the concrete barriers and carry out the mayhem that he then is accused of doing. mayhem that he then is accused of doinu. ., . ., ~ mayhem that he then is accused of doin. ., ., ., ,, ., of doing. you are talking about the motive. — of doing. you are talking about the motive, potential- of doing. you are talking about the motive, potential motive i the motive, potential motive and the ideology you've been describing. would you go as far to say this was a new phenomenon in terms of motive or in terms of ideologies? it certainly unusual for somebody to take it this far. there are different aspects of the different aspects of the different strands to his ideology. there are plenty of conspiracy theorists who would agree with him, i say... a

minority but he is not alone in that minority and suspecting that minority and suspecting that there is some kind of plot to take over europe by people from the middle east or something. this has certainly fed into some bits of far right ideology. but where i think he is a particularly special case is a particularly special case is this is somebody who is left saudi arabia, decided to make germany his adoptive home, appears to have started a campaign to help others that want to leave saudi arabia and turned their back on that country and in some cases on its religion and he maintains that this was something where he was in some way threatened. there are documented pieces whereby saudi dissidents living in germany and canada claimed to have been under surveillance and threat by agents of the saudi state. this all ties back

in at the time of the murder backin in at the time of the murder back in 2018 where there was use of very intrusive telephone software, spyware essentially software, spywa re essentially used software, spyware essentially used to track down and monitor those people who were suspected of being dissidents against the saudi government. we haven't heard very much about that in recent years. heard very much about that in recent years-— heard very much about that in recent years. frank, thank you very much _ recent years. frank, thank you very much for— recent years. frank, thank you very much for the _ recent years. frank, thank you very much for the frank - recent years. frank, thank you i very much for the frank gardner our security correspondent. let's take you live to the scenes inside magdeburg cathedral. the vigil taking place. you can imagine what a beautiful scene this would be this close to christmas, normally looking at the cathedral and so many people in there. this is so very different because of the events 24 different because of the events 2a hours ago. they are holding a vigilfor those 2a hours ago. they are holding a vigil for those killed and injured in the christmas market attacks. let's listen in for a

moment. music. this service reserved particularly for those affected by those attacks 2a hours ago. that attack yesterday for the emergency and relief workers, families and representatives of the federal, state and city governments all their gathering in the cathedral. there is not room for everybody

who wants to attend. people as we have seen outside there. this is the point of comfort for those so traumatized by the events of yesterday evening in magdeburg at the christmas market where at least five people market where at least five peopl