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Vehicle hits Berlin Pride
A white van drove into a crowd near Berlin’s annual Christopher Street Day (CSD) Pride event in Tiergarten park on Saturday night, killing at least one person and injuring at least 15 others, prompting police to cancel the remaining celebrations and a concert in the German capital.
Berlin police said, "We believe that a vehicle entered the Tiergarten park and hit several people," and they later reported that some victims suffered "life-threatening injuries."
DW reported that Berlin’s CSD is "one of Europe's biggest Pride events celebrating the LGBTQ+ community," and it said the event was called off around 10:15 p.m. as authorities urged people to "go home, please."
Fox News said German authorities canceled the festival after "a white van rammed the festivities in Berlin," and it reported that police were deployed with rescue units from the Berlin Fire Department in the Großer Tiergarten.
The Guardian reported that police called on everyone to leave the event immediately, and it said the driver swerved shortly before 10pm into the Tiergarten park close to the route of the pride march earlier Saturday.
Manhunt and political condemnation
Police said they were searching for suspects after the vehicle entered Tiergarten park, with Florian Nath telling reporters, "We are conducting an intensive manhunt for suspects," while other coverage described the search as an intensive search for possible suspects.
The Guardian quoted police saying, "We are conducting an intensive search for the suspects," as it described a large police and emergency services presence in the Tiergarten area.
Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner condemned the attack as "an attack on our free and open society," and DW reported that he said, "After a peaceful and colorful CSD, the assembly for a tolerant and peaceful Berlin was attacked in the most brutal way."
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also condemned what he called a "horrific act," and the Guardian reported that he vowed to punish the perpetrators.
DW said it was unclear whether there was one or multiple perpetrators and that no arrests had been made yet, while Fox News said authorities hadn’t released a possible motive.
What happens next for CSD
Organisers and authorities moved quickly to protect participants after the ramming, with police urging people to leave the event site immediately and the Guardian reporting that organisers used social media to call on participants to evacuate the site for their own safety.
DW said the CSD parade ended on 17 June Street, which crosses Berlin’s Tiergarten to the Brandenburg Gate, and it reported that the gate has been the venue for concerts since Friday.
The Guardian reported that emergency services personnel set up a helicopter landing pad near the Reichstag parliament building nearby to transport the injured to hospitals, and it said the parade ran under the motto "Taking a stand is hot."
Fox News said the incident occurred during the European city’s annual Christopher Street Day festival, and it reported that the event included a parade and ended Saturday evening with a show at Tiergarten park near Brandenberg Gate.
In the aftermath, the Guardian said Berlin will hold a state election in September, while DW said the incident was developing and that more to come was expected as police continued their search.
