Magdeburg, Germany

In Germany, a deadly car attack on a Christmas market on Friday (Dec 20) killed at least five, including a toddler and injured more than 200. The vehicle barrelled through revellers at high speed in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. German police have arrested a Saudi man for the attack.

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The attacker, identified by German media by a partial name Taleb A., is a 50-year-old doctor of psychiatry from Saudi Arabia, who has been living in Germany since 2006. 

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What happened?

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According to reports, just after 7:00 pm local time (1800 GMT), a black BMW barrelled through revellers at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, the capital of Saxony-Anhalt, around 150 kilometres (93 miles) west of Berlin.

Police said the vehicle drove 400 metres or more through the Christmas market, leaving behind a trail of injured people, wreckage and shattered glass in the city's main square.

Regional premier Reiner Haseloff spoke to the press and called the tragic attack "a catastrophe for the city of Magdeburg, for the state, and for Germany in general."

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"We have arrested the perpetrator, a man from Saudi Arabia, a doctor who has been in Germany since 2006," he said, adding that authorities do not believe there is any further danger.

"From what we currently know, he was a lone attacker, so we don't think there is any further danger."

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Video footage later showed the police arresting the driver of the heavily damaged black car. 

Police, with handguns trained at the bearded man with glasses, can be heard shouting "lie down, hands on your back, don't move!" as the driver lies down on the ground next to the car.

(With inputs from agencies)