Car drives into crowd in German city, killing two

THOMAS LOHNES/ AFP

A car drove into a crowd in the western German city of Mannheim on Monday, killing at least two people andseriously injuring several others, overshadowing carnival celebrations in the region where police had been on alert for attacks.

Police detained the car's driver and later said he had acted alone, with no broader threat seen for the public.

The suspect is a 40-year-old German man from the neighbouring state of Rhineland-Palatinate who did not appear to be politically motivated, they said.

It was unclear whether the driver acted deliberately or if there was any connection to Germany's carnival celebrations, which culminated on Rose Monday with a number of parades, although not in Mannheim, which held its main event on Sunday.

Police declined to comment on the suspect's identity, saying this was a focus of their investigation.

Security has been a key concern in Germany following a string of violent attacks in recent weeks, including deadly car rammings in Magdeburg in December and in Munich last month, as well as a stabbing in Mannheim in May 2024.

Police were on high alert for this year's carnival parades after social media accounts linked to the IS militant group called for attacks on the events in Cologne and Nuremberg.

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser cancelled her attendance at the parade in Cologne on Monday, Germany's biggest, due to the events in Mannheim, a spokesperson for the minister said.

Rose Monday, the culmination of the annual carnival season celebrated in Germany's mainly Catholic western and southern regions, features parades of floats that often include comical or satirical references to current affairs.

This year's carnival has included floats featuring US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, tech billionaire Elon Musk and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Dressed in traditional jester costumes and sporting colourful makeup, thousands of partygoers danced through the streets of Cologne, Dusseldorf and other cities in western and southern Germany ahead of the fasting season of Lent.

More from International

  • Thousands of Australians without power as cyclone Alfred hits

    Hundreds of thousands of people in Australia's Queensland state were without power on Sunday after Alfred, a downgraded tropical cyclone, brought damaging winds and heavy rains, sparking flood warnings.

  • Israeli airstrike kills two in southern Gaza

    An Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday, medical sources said, as mediators pushed ahead with talks to extend a shaky 42-day ceasefire agreed in January between Israel and Hamas.

  • 12 people injured in Toronto pub shooting

    Toronto Police said early on Saturday they were searching for three male suspects in a shooting that injured at least 12 people at a pub in the Canadian city.

  • Cyclone Alfred downgraded as millions stay indoors

    Ex-tropical cyclone Alfred lingered off the south-east Australian coast on Saturday and forecasters said Brisbane is likely to miss the worst of the storm, a relief for millions of residents in the region who have been staying indoors.

  • South Korea's President Yoon free, trials continue

    South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol walked out of a detention centre in Seoul on Saturday after prosecutors decided not to appeal a court decision to cancel the impeached leader's arrest warrant on insurrection charges.