Crime
The Berlin Christmas market that became the site of a deadly truck attack just over three years ago was evacuated late Saturday amid a police investigation into a suspicious object.
Visitors left the Christmas market at central Berlin’s Breitscheidplatz in a quiet and orderly fashion, police said on Twitter.
A service at the nearby Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was also interrupted, police said.
Police searched over several hours but found no sign of danger. The search operation was started after police noticed two male suspects behaving suspiciously, a spokesman said.
They were taken into police custody but later released.
Authorities thought one of the men was subject to a warrant but it turned out to be a mix-up involving similar names, police said.
Police said they “reacted sensitively” because the same market was the site of a deadly truck attack three years ago.
On Dec. 19, 2016, a Tunisian national Anis Amri drove a stolen truck through the festive gathering at the Berlin square, killing 11 people and injuring 70 more.
Amri had already killed the driver of the truck and seized his vehicle to carry out the attack. (dpa/NAN)
– Dec. 22, 2019 @ 13:29 GMT |
Tags: Police give all-clear after Berlin Christmas market evacuation
