Christmas Market Attack
Germany is mourning a Friday evening attack.
A man drove his car through a crowded Christmas market in the city of Magdeburg, killing five people—including a 9-year-old—and injuring 200. The suspect, a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia, was arrested at the scene and charged with murder and attempted murder. He’s lived in Germany for two decades and was active on X (formerly Twitter), where he frequently criticized German authorities and Islam; the attack’s motive is still under investigation.
Germany’s government is facing criticism for their lack of intervention after Saudi officials claimed they warned German authorities four times in two years to keep an eye on the suspect.
The tragedy comes eight years after a similar attack that killed 12 at a Christmas market in Berlin.
ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE
While mourning with victims and praying for our enemies, Christians have hope in the face of a violent world. The servant of God, who himself did no violence, has been afflicted by his Father on our behalf so that we can live in the Lord’s peaceful presence forever.
“Yet he himself bore our sicknesses, and he carried our pains; but we in turn regarded him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.”
Isaiah 53:4-5 (CSB) (read full passage)