Germany: Police suspect ‘Islamist’ motive in Berlin motorway crashes

German prosecutors said that a series of crashes in Berlin highway on August 18 was an “Islamist-motivated attack” which left six people injured. Berlin Police and public prosecutor’s office said in a joint statement that the 30-year-old Iraqi-born man deliberately drove his car into motorcycles and his statements suggest a religious-Islamist motivation with evidence of psychological instability.

After the crash, the man stopped on the highway and put an old ammunition box on the roof of his car, claiming to have explosives inside. Specialists were called by the police who opened the container only to find a water gun and tools. Berlin authorities said that the city's highway is still shut down since the series of crashes led to a complete closure of one of the main traffic arteries of Berlin.

Prosecutors said that the statements by the suspect cannot be reconciled with a random accident, adding that those were targeted attacks, particularly on motorcyclists. They said that there are indications of a religious-Islamist motivation and the suspect will be brought before a magistrate for attempted murder on August 19. Read:

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'Personal problems mix with religiously charged ideas'

Germany’s Interior Minister Andreas Geisel said that a religiously motivated action cannot be ruled out and it will get clearer with further investigation. Geisel stated that motorcyclists have no chance if they are hit by a car in a targeted manner, hoping that the three seriously injured will recover quickly. He added that the suspect may have suffered from mental health problems but it doesn't make things any easier. 

“When personal problems mix with religiously charged ideas, it can lead to uncontrollable action. The events of yesterday show us very painfully how vulnerable our free society is,” the minister said in a statement.

Geisel lamented that Berlin remains the focus of Islamic terrorism and the government has worked to equip the security authorities in terms of organisation, technology and personnel since 2016. He said that a modernised General Safety and Order Act, ASOG, will be introduced in the House of Representatives. 

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(Image: AP)