Child, 9, among dead after car driven into crowd at Christmas market in Germany
Social media videos show dozens of people crowded at market stalls when the vehicle is driven directly into them, ITV News' Will Tullis reports
German officials have confirmed that a nine-year-old child is among at least five people to have died after a car ploughed into a crowd at a Christmas market in the eastern city of Magdeburg.
At least 200 people were injured in the incident, which happened on Friday evening, with dozens left in a serious condition, a city official said.
The driver of the car has been arrested, with Saxony-Anhalt's interior minister, Tamara Zieschang, telling reporters that the suspect is a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who first came to Germany in 2006 and has a permanent residency permit.
Several German media outlets identified the man as Taleb A - withholding his last name in line with privacy laws - and reported that he was a specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy.
He describes himself as a former Muslim and has accused German authorities of failing to do enough to address what he called the "Islamism of Europe".
"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 said.
He added he could not rule out further deaths because so many people were seriously injured.
Footage from social media, verified by ITV News' US partner CNN, shows the moment a black car drove directly into the crowd at the busy Christmas market.
In the video, dozens of people can be seen crowded around market stalls when the vehicle is driven directly into them.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was "horrified" by the "atrocious attack" and offered his support to the people of Germany.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy also said he was "appalled by the news from Magdeburg" and offered support to his German counterpart.
The UK government is in contact with German authorities, the Foreign Office said, and is closely monitoring the situation.
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the site of the attack in Magdeburg on Saturday and, while there, placed a white rose on a memorial for the victims.
"There is no more peaceful, more joyous place in Germany than Christmas markets when people come together ahead of the Christmas festival and spend some time together, drink mulled wine, have a sausage together to relax together," Mr Scholz told reporters.
"What for a terrible act is that, to injure and to kill so many people with such brutality."
Prior to his visit, he posted on X: "My thoughts are with the victims and their relatives. We stand beside them and beside the people of Magdeburg."
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Elon Musk has labeled Scholz an "incompetent fool" and called on him to resign "immediately" in a comment posted on X.
The remarks were made in response to a social media post about Friday evening's Magdeburg attack, which quoted the German chancellor's statement about standing with the people of the city.
"Scholz should resign immediately. Incompetent fool," replied Musk, who yesterday came out in support of the far-right party Alternative for Germany, or AfD.
Magdeburg, which is west of Berlin, is the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt and has about 240,000 inhabitants.
Germany has suffered a string of extremist attacks in recent years.
On December 19 2016, in Berlin, an Islamic extremist attacker ploughed through a crowd of Christmas market-goers with a truck, leaving 13 people dead and injuring dozens more. The attacker was killed days later in a shootout in Italy.
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had said late last month that there were no concrete indications of a danger to Christmas markets this year, but that it was wise to be vigilant.
Berlin police have increased their presence at the city's Christmas markets following the attack.
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