Horrific crime in Magdeburg

“Mixture of conspiracy and right-wing extremism”

Hundreds of people were injured and several killed in the attack at the Christmas market in Magdeburg.(Bild: APA/AFP/John MACDOUGALL)

The mystery surrounding the motive of the Magdeburg attacker is still great. Terror expert Nicolas Stockhammer analyzes the personality and possible motives of the attacker for the "Krone" newspaper.

"Krone": Why another attack on a Christmas market?Nicolas Stockhammer: Christmas markets are and will continue to be highly symbolic and therefore "attractive" targets. The use of vehicles as a means of attack also remains topical.

Why the Magdeburg Christmas market was not adequately secured is questionable. The attacker was able to race around 400 meters into the crowd unhindered.

Is there now a danger of copycat attacks?
The security forces in Austria will also have to continue to pay attention to such scenarios. IS has repeatedly called for attacks on these targets. Most recently too.

But the Magdeburg terrorist is unlikely to have anything to do with IS, right?the arrested attacker Taleb A. does not fit the pattern of terrorist attacks that has recently become common in Europe: a 50-year-old doctor with a Saudi Arabian background who has lived legally in Germany for 18 years and has worked with convicted criminals.

At the moment, it looks more like the act of a radicalized individual perpetrator; no reliable information is yet available about the motive or the type of radicalization.

What is your personal assessment?
It is very likely that a combination of causes can be assumed. The hate crime could also be triggered by a personal trauma, depression or simply "anger at politics". The ideological motive - reports speak of the attacker making statements critical of Islam - could also be a mixture of conspiracy narratives and right-wing extremism.