WEB DESK
The reported terror attack in Berlin has raised concerns about violence against asylum seekers in Germany.
On Monday night, a truck slammed into a crowded Christmas market in central Berlin, killing at least 12 people and wounding 48. The suspected driver was detained near the scene while a passenger – reported to be a Polish national – was found dead in the truck.
The attention has been focused on the origins of the suspect: Some news agencies are suggesting that the driver was a 23-year-old Pakistan refugee, who came to Germany last year. He could well be an Afghan or Afghan-Pakistani. Investigators have yet to clarify this.
According to DW, thousands of Pakistani and Afghan refugees in Germany fear what impact attack will have on them – particularly from their host country’s far-right groups – as it’s not the first time a refugee has terrorized Germans.
In July, the “Islamic State” (“IS”) militant group claimed responsibility for two attacks carried out by asylum seekers in the Bavarian town of Ansbach. In August, a 17-year-old Afghan asylum seeker was shot dead by German police after he attacked several passengers in a train near the southern German city of Würzburg with an axe and knife, inflicting serious injuries. Barely two months later, a 19-year-old medical student Maria was allegedly raped and murdered by an underage Afghan refugee while she was returning home from a party.
‘It will make things worse for us’
“I am still finding it hard to believe that somebody from Pakistan could do something like this. We have faced tremendous hardships on our way to reach Europe. And if it is proven that a Pakistani refugee has committed a terrorist act in Berlin, I’m afraid this will make things worse for us,” said Akber Ali, a 36-year-old Pakistani refugee in Bonn, who came to Germany last year.
Berlin-based Pakistani migrant Muhammad Bilal says this incident will likely spark hatred against Pakistani nationals in general.