This is a collection of photos chosen by AP photo editors.
Models showcase a creation by Hongdu on stage during the SS25 China Fashion Week in Beijing, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Aryna Sabalenka, of Belarus, kicks the ball after double faulting against Jessica Pegula, of the United States, during the women's singles final of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A demonstrator waves the Israeli and U.S. flags during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders takes his seat at the high security court at Schiphol, near Amsterdam, Netherlands, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, to hear the verdict against two Pakistani men on charges of threatening Wilders. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
A Lebanese police officer blocks protesters from entering the court building, as they protest against Riad Salameh, the former governor of Lebanon's Central Bank, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A devotee takes an idol of elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesha to immerse in the Arabian Sea, during the ten days long Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Dancers of the Mexican singer Gerardo Ortiz performs during the Arre Music Festival in Mexico City, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
A Syrian soldier smokes a cigaret, as he sits on the ground in the town of Masyaf, Syria, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. Syrian state news agency SANA says that Israeli strikes hit several areas in central Syria Sunday night, damaging a highway in Hama province and sparking fires. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
Andre Rioux, of Nashua, N.H., dives for the ball in a football game at the Mud Bowl in North Conway, N.H., Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
Juan Minujín arrives on the red carpet for the premiere of 'Without Blood' at TIFF Lightbox, during the Toronto International Film Festival, in Toronto, on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press via AP)
Pope Francis hughs a child in traditional dress as he attends with East Timor's President José Manuel Ramos-Horta, seated at right, a welcome ceremony outside the Presidential Palace in Dili, East Timor, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. Pope Francis arrived in East Timor on Monday to encourage its recovery from a bloody and traumatic past and celebrate its development after two decades of independence from Indonesian rule. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad)
Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) is tackled by Denver Broncos players during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
A woman walks her daughter to school amid smoke from wildfires in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
A member prays during a Sunday service at Bethlehem Church, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Bethlehem, Ga. Colt Gray, 14, has been charged with murder over the killing of two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Barrow County, outside Atlanta, on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Firefighter Nolan Graham sprays water around a scorched garage as the Boyles fire burns in Clearlake, Calif., on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
North Koreans celebrate the country's 76th founding anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Cha Song Ho)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump gestures during a campaign event at Central Wisconsin Airport, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, in Mosinee, Wis. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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Models showcase a creation by Hongdu on stage during the SS25 China Fashion Week in Beijing, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Aryna Sabalenka, of Belarus, kicks the ball after double faulting against Jessica Pegula, of the United States, during the women's singles final of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A demonstrator waves the Israeli and U.S. flags during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders takes his seat at the high security court at Schiphol, near Amsterdam, Netherlands, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, to hear the verdict against two Pakistani men on charges of threatening Wilders. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
A Lebanese police officer blocks protesters from entering the court building, as they protest against Riad Salameh, the former governor of Lebanon's Central Bank, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A devotee takes an idol of elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesha to immerse in the Arabian Sea, during the ten days long Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Dancers of the Mexican singer Gerardo Ortiz performs during the Arre Music Festival in Mexico City, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
A Syrian soldier smokes a cigaret, as he sits on the ground in the town of Masyaf, Syria, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. Syrian state news agency SANA says that Israeli strikes hit several areas in central Syria Sunday night, damaging a highway in Hama province and sparking fires. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
Andre Rioux, of Nashua, N.H., dives for the ball in a football game at the Mud Bowl in North Conway, N.H., Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
Juan Minujín arrives on the red carpet for the premiere of 'Without Blood' at TIFF Lightbox, during the Toronto International Film Festival, in Toronto, on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press via AP)
Pope Francis hughs a child in traditional dress as he attends with East Timor's President José Manuel Ramos-Horta, seated at right, a welcome ceremony outside the Presidential Palace in Dili, East Timor, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. Pope Francis arrived in East Timor on Monday to encourage its recovery from a bloody and traumatic past and celebrate its development after two decades of independence from Indonesian rule. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad)
Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) is tackled by Denver Broncos players during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
A woman walks her daughter to school amid smoke from wildfires in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
A member prays during a Sunday service at Bethlehem Church, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Bethlehem, Ga. Colt Gray, 14, has been charged with murder over the killing of two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Barrow County, outside Atlanta, on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Firefighter Nolan Graham sprays water around a scorched garage as the Boyles fire burns in Clearlake, Calif., on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
North Koreans celebrate the country's 76th founding anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Cha Song Ho)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump gestures during a campaign event at Central Wisconsin Airport, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, in Mosinee, Wis. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) — Germans began Saturday mourning another violent attack and their shaken sense of security after a Saudi doctor drove a black BMW into a Christmas market teeming with holiday shoppers on Friday evening, killing at least two people, including a small child, and injuring at least 60 others in what authorities called a deliberate attack.
Authorities identified the suspect as a 50-year-old who has been living in Germany for nearly two decades and practicing medicine there. He was arrested Friday evening at the site of the attack as medical officials tended to the injured, and was taken into custody for questioning.
But on Saturday there were still no answers as to what caused the man to drive into a crowd in the eastern Germany city of Magdeburg.
The violence shocked the country and the city, bringing its mayor to the verge of tears and marring a festive event that’s part of a centuries-old German tradition. It prompted several other German towns to cancel their weekend Christmas markets as a precaution and out of solidarity with Magdeburg’s loss.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Interior Minister Nancy Faeser were due to travel to Magdeburg on Saturday, and a memorial service is to take place in the city cathedral in the evening.
“My thoughts are with the victims and their relatives," Scholz wrote on X. "We stand beside them and beside the people of Magdeburg.”
Magdeburg is a city of about 240,000 people, west of Berlin, that serves as Saxony-Anhalt’s capital. Friday’s attack came eight years after an Islamic extremist drove a truck into crowded Christmas market in Berlin, killing 13 people and injuring many others. The attacker was killed days later in a shootout in Italy.
Verified bystander footage distributed by the German news agency dpa showed the suspect’s arrest at a tram stop in the middle of the road. A nearby police officer pointing a handgun at the man shouted at him as he lay prone, his head arched up slightly. Other officers soon arrived and took the man into custody.
The two people confirmed dead were an adult and a toddler, but officials said additional deaths couldn't be ruled out because 15 people had been seriously injured.
“As things stand, he is a lone perpetrator, so that as far as we know there is no further danger to the city," Saxony-Anhalt's governor, Reiner Haseloff, told reporters. “Every human life that has fallen victim to this attack is a terrible tragedy and one human life too many.”
Authorities identified the suspect as a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who moved to Germany in 2006 and who had been practicing medicine in Bernburg, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Magdeburg.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry condemned the attack on X but did not mention the suspect’s connection to the kingdom.
Christmas markets are a German holiday tradition cherished since the Middle Ages, now successfully exported to much of the Western world.
Hours after Friday's tragedy, the wail of sirens clashed with the market’s festive ornaments, stars and leafy garlands.
Magdeburg resident Dorin Steffen told dpa that she was at a concert in a nearby church when she heard the sirens. The cacophony was so loud “you had to assume that something terrible had happened.”
She called the attack “a dark day” for the city.
“We are shaking,” Steffen said. “Full of sympathy for the relatives, also in the hope that nothing has happened to our relatives, friends and acquaintances.”
The attack reverberated far beyond Magdeburg, with Haseloff calling it a catastrophe for the city, state and country. He said flags would be lowered to half-staff in Saxony-Anhalt and that the federal government planned to do the same.
“It is really one of the worst things one can imagine, particularly in connection with what a Christmas market should bring," the governor said.
Moulson reported from Berlin.
Security guards stand in front of a cordoned-off Christmas Market after a car crashed into a crowd of people, in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Reiner Haseloff, Minister President of Saxony-Anhalt, center, is flanked by Tamara Zieschang, Minister of the Interior and Sport of Saxony-Anhalt, left, and Simone Borris, Mayor of the City of Magdeburg, at a press conference after a car plowed into a busy outdoor Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (Hendrik Schmidt/dpa via AP)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
A police officer guards at a blocked road near a Christmas Market, after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services attend an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Dörthe Hein/dpa via AP)
Emergency services attend an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)
Emergency services attend an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)
A police officer guards at a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
In this screen grab image from video, special police forces attend an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Thomas Schulz/dpa via AP)
Reiner Haseloff (M, CDU), Minister President of Saxony-Anhalt, makes a statement after an incident at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)
A police officer speaks with a man at a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
A policeman is seen at the Christmas market where an incident happened in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)
A firefighter walks through a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after a car drove into a crowd in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Emergency services work in a cordoned-off area near a Christmas Market, after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
A view of the cordoned-off Christmas market after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP)
A police officer guards at a blocked road near a Christmas market after an incident in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
The car that was crashed into a crowd of people at the Magdeburg Christmas market is seen following the attack in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday early morning, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Security guards stand in front of a cordoned-off Christmas Market after a car crashed into a crowd of people, in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday early morning, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Security guards stand in front of a cordoned-off Christmas Market after a car crashed into a crowd of people, in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday early morning, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
The car that was crashed into a crowd of people at the Magdeburg Christmas market is seen following the attack in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday early morning, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Forensics work on a damaged car sitting with its doors open after a driver plowed into a busy Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, early Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Hendrik Schmidt/dpa via AP)
