Suspect in fatal German Christmas market attack featured in 2019 BBC interview

​​​​​​​By Zeynep Katre Oran

Talib A., the suspect who rammed a vehicle into a Christmas market in Germany that killed five people Friday, was featured in a BBC interview.

The Saudi-born doctor, who is accused of ramming a vehicle into a Christmas market in Germany that killed at least five people Friday and injured more than 200, spoke to the BBC in 2019 where he defined himself as an activist and said he assisted people who had left Islam and sought asylum.

He noted that he had created a website to help those, particularly from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region, who reached out to him for support in their asylum claims.

The suspect came to Germany in 2006 and had been working as a psychiatrist in Bernburg, south of Magdeburg.

His social media posts often expressed concerns about the rise of Islam in Germany. He shared posts in support of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, a far-right party opposed to Muslim immigration, and other anti-Islam groups in Europe. He is also said to have shared a map of the so-called "Greater Israel" that includes parts of Turkish territory.