Berlin Pride attack suspect shot dead by German police

German police have killed the suspect in a deadly attack at Berlin's Pride festival, ending a nearly 24-hour manhunt. The 21-year-old, identified as Abdul Ballout, was shot and died at the scene in a Berlin suburb after allegedly running toward officers with a sharp instrument.

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Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged people not to be intimidated or divided by the fatal attack.

The attack occurred Saturday night near the Brandenburg Gate, where a van was driven into a crowd, followed by alleged stabbings. One person died, and 29 others were injured. Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged citizens not to be intimidated or divided by the fatal incident.

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Everything we see here indicates that this was an Islamist terror attack.

Authorities are treating the attack as "an Islamist terror attack." Ballout, a German citizen born in Germany, had a significant criminal record, including convictions for bodily harm, extortion, and robbery. He had also attracted attention for radicalization, sharing Islamic State propaganda online and traveling to Lebanon in 2024 with the intent to fight for the militia in Syria.

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He apparently ran toward officers with a sharp instrument, and police fired at least one shot.

Ballout was arrested in Lebanon and served a three-month sentence for inciting religious and sectarian conflict. Upon returning to Germany, he was convicted in May of preparing a serious act of violence endangering the state and publishing IS propaganda. He received a suspended sentence, which prosecutors had appealed. The court had cited his pre-trial detention, confession, and apparent distancing from the militant group as reasons for the suspended sentence.

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Abdul Ballout, 21, had "attracted attention in the past through a high number of criminal offences".