Mannheim attack latest: One dead and several injured after car rams into crowd in centre of German city
At least one person has died and multiple people have been injured after a car was driven into a crowd of people in the German city of Mannheim.
Police spokesperson Stefan Wilhelm said that a driver drove into a group of people in Paradeplatz, a pedestrianised street, killing one person.
An eyewitness reported seeing a driver knocking over several pedestrians in Planken, the main shopping street in the city of around 300,000, the outlet added. Heavily armed officers are in Paradeplatz and blocking the bridges near Ludwigshaden.
The interior ministry at Baden-Württemberg has said the incident is a “life threatening situation” via a warning app alert, and local residents are being advised by police to avoid the city centre. BILD reports that a black SUV was used in the attack, after driving from Paradeplatz to Wasserturm.
A spokesperson for Mannheim police said: “There is currently a police operation in Mannheim city center, in the area around Wasserturm/Plankenkopf.”
While it is not yet clear whether the incident was an accident or intentional, it comes after a car was driven into a crowd in Munich last month in a suspected attack.
