Market Attacker Should Have Been Extradited When...: Musk Slams Germany Over Its 'Suicidal Empathy'

Magdeburg: Billionaire Elon Musk has openly criticised German authorities, calling for accountability following a deadly attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany. The incident, which occurred on Friday evening, claimed five lives, including that of a 9-year-old child, and left nearly 200 injured. The attacker, identified as Saudi doctor Taleb A, drove into the crowded market, raising concerns over public safety and government oversight as per AP reports. 

Musk Calls it a 'Deliberate Attack'  

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Musk described the attack as ‘deliberate mass murder' and launched a scathing critique of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, calling for his immediate resignation. Musk shared a series of screenshots and posts from the attacker’s X profile, drawing attention to what he called the German government’s failure to act on previous warnings.  

“Scholz should resign immediately,” Musk posted, adding that the incident exposed a dangerous level of negligence.  

Suicidal Empathy by German Government

The attacker, Taleb A, reportedly fled Saudi Arabia in 2006 after being accused of serious crimes, including rape. According to Musk, Germany ignored extradition requests from Saudi authorities due to concerns over human rights. He accused German leadership of showing ‘suicidal empathy’ by allowing a ‘lunatic’ to remain in the country despite his alleged criminal past.

He wrote in an X post, "Yeah, he was obviously a lunatic who should never have been allowed to enter Germany and should have been extradited when Saudi Arabia made the request. Suicidal empathy by the German government.

Musk also referenced a report from September 2023, in which a Saudi woman in Germany had warned the police about Jawad’s plans to carry out an attack. Musk criticised the police for allegedly dismissing the report. “The German police ignored the report and acted in a stupid bureaucratic manner,” he wrote.  

What Happened on Friday Night in Crowded Christmas Market in Germany?

Five people were killed, including a 9-year-old, after a Saudi doctor drove into a Christmas market teeming with holiday shoppers in the German city of Magdeburg, officials said Saturday, as people mourned the victims and their shaken sense of security.

How did the attack unfold? Thi Linh Chi Nguyen, a 34-year-old manicurist from Vietnam — whose salon is located in a mall across the Christmas market — was on the phone during a break when she heard loud bangs and thought at first they were fireworks. She then saw a car drive through the market at high speed. People screamed and a child was thrown into the air by the car.

The woman recalled seeing the car bursting out of the market and turning right onto Ernst-Reuter-Allee street and then coming to a standstill at the tram stop where the suspect was arrested.

The market itself was still cordoned off Saturday with red-and-white tape and police vans every 50 metres (yards). Police with machine pistols guarded every entry to the market. Some thermal security blankets still lay on the street.

Who's the man behind the attack? Prosecutors said the suspect, a 50-year-old Saudi doctor, is under investigation on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and bodily harm.

(With PTI Inputs)