The main suspect in the recent German car-ramming attack that killed five and injured more than 200 has been identified as Taleb al-Abdulmohsen, a self-described member of the "liberal opposition" to Saudi Arabia who has voiced strong anti-Islamic and anti-immigration views.
Two senior U.S. officials familiar with the matter identified al-Abdulmohsen as the suspect.
The car allegedly driven by al-Abdulmohsen plowed 1,200 feet into a crowd in a narrow alley in Magdeburg, a city of about 240,000 people west of Berlin, where shoppers had gathered last 20 December. The victims include four adults and a 9-year-old child.
Al-Abdulmohsen, a doctor from Saudi Arabia who lived in Germany, sought asylum in Germany in 2016, citing threats from Saudi Arabia, before working at a clinic as a "specialist in psychiatry." But his online activity includes historic and recent inflammatory content on X, and he has been accused of erratic behavior by an NGO for refugees.
The suspect has also aligned himself with far-right movements such as Germany’s anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, while praising figures like Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders.
Police have not released a motive in the Christmas market attack, but two senior U.S. officials told NBC News authorities are investigating whether the incident is terrorism-related. As of now, German prosecutors have said they are planning to file homicide and attempted homicide charges as well as aggravated assault counts, the senior U.S. officials said.
Al-Abdulmohsen’s bio on his X account, verified by NBC News, says, "Germany wants to Islamize Europe."
In December, he retweeted an X event titled "Islam — a worldwide problem," and in November, he retweeted a post claiming "Islam is not a religion." The same month, he also retweeted Alice Weidel, co-chairwoman of the far-right Alternative for Germany, who accused former Chancellor Angela Merkel of causing "serious damage" to Germany, blaming her for "uncontrolled mass immigration."
The German police declined to comment on al-Abdulmohsen’s X account due to the ongoing investigation.
In 2019, al-Abdulmohsen told the newspaper FAZ that he left Islam in his early 20s after pretending he was still a Muslim. He explained that when he registered on Twitter, his intent was "only to criticize Islam."