Getty Images“I feel bad, I still feel that way,” said Edewecht, standing in a Christmas market near where the car sped off on Friday, killing five people and injuring more than 200 others.
“My granddaughter was here. I called her because my daughter told me something had happened here. She didn't answer for two hours.”
There is deep sadness here, and anger directed at the government and immigrants. “It can't go on like this,” Edewecht said.
A 50-year-old Saudi refugee was arrested for the attack, but the motive is unknown.
Officials say Talib Al-Abdul Mohsen was an “unusual” attacker. Christmas markets and festivals in Germany have been attacked before, especially by Islamist extremists.
He has been described as a critic of Islam and on social media has expressed support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, praising the party for fighting the same enemy as him “to protect Germany.”
The Alternative for Germany party did not comment on these posts, and the party plans to hold a mourning procession in Magdeburg later on Monday, in the presence of National Party leader Alice Weidel.
Her party currently ranks high in opinion polls ahead of the federal elections scheduled for February 23, especially in states such as Saxony-Anhalt in the former East Germany.
This attack brought to the fore two major electoral issues, security and immigration, and figures from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party have highlighted both issues since the attack.
Despite the suspect's numerous statements expressing hostility to Islam, the head of the Alternative for Germany party in Saxony-Anhalt, Martin Reichardt, said in a statement that “the attack in Magdeburg shows that Germany is drifting toward political and religious fanaticism that has origins in another world.” “.
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ReutersA counter-demonstration will also be held and anti-racism groups in Magdeburg accused the AfD of exploiting the attack.
David Bigrich of Miteinander eV said people in the city needed a chance to catch their breath.
“In immigrant communities, there is a lot of concern about becoming scapegoats,” he said. “We don't want that. We want to organize solidarity throughout society, but at the same time we are also sensitive to the voices of those who are now reacting with fear and uncertainty.”
Germans wonder how the attack happened, when security was already tight at Christmas markets, and when the authorities have clearly investigated the suspect several times in recent years.
The threat he posed was considered “very non-specific”, according to one assessment, while a tip against him in September 2023 appears to have fallen through the cracks.
In another apparent security failure, the driver also managed to pass through a gap left open for emergency access, when it was supposed to be filled by a police car.
Christmas market stallholders are now allowed to return, dispose of old food and remove their equipment and stock.
No one I contacted wanted to talk to the BBC. Everything is very raw.
There has also been hostility towards journalists over the past few days, especially after around 2,000 people joined a far-right protest in Magdeburg on Saturday evening.
The German Journalists Association said there were attacks and threats against the press and called for greater police protection.
The BBC team joined mourners gathered in Cathedral Square for a live broadcast of the vigil for the victims of the attack, and many they spoke to said it was important to show solidarity in a time of terrible distress.
But one woman sounded a note of caution. “There are some Nazis here who don't like journalists,” she said. “Please be careful.”
