The News
Reactions to a deadly attack at a German Christmas market has resurfaced the country’s bitter divisions over immigration and security.
Right-wing, anti-immigration figures both inside Germany and abroad seized on Friday’s incident after authorities identified the suspect — accused of driving an SUV through a crowd, killing five — as a Saudi doctor.
But some modified their tone following revelations that the man, who arrived in Germany in 2006, had criticized Islam and sympathized with the far right.
The attack “creates uncertainty at a time when certainties are already crumbling,” a Der Spiegel columnist wrote.
The incident will undoubtedly factor into Germany’s February election, called after the government collapsed, and comes as the country grapples with broad economic discontent.