Vehicle rams into crowd in Mannheim, Germany, killing at least 2 and leaving others wounded
A German man drove a vehicle into a crowd of people in the western German city of Mannheim on Monday, killing at least two people and leaving others seriously injured, according to police. The city's police force urged people to avoid central Mannheim, and later said there did not appear to be a political motivation behind the incident.
The incident came as crowds gathered in cities across Germany for parades to mark the Christian Carnival season, and witnesses said the incident occurred near one such event. The ramming came on what Christian Germans mark as Rose Monday, the highlight of their carnival season that takes place on Shrove Monday, before the Lenten period begins on Ash Wednesday.
In statements posted on social media, the police confirmed an ongoing operation after "a car drove into a group of people in Mannheim city center."
Five people were seriously injured and five others suffered minor injuries, the police said.
The police said officers "were able to arrest the 40-year-old German suspect from Rhineland-Palatinate," the German state that the city of Mannheim sits right on the eastern border of. They said "at the current stage of the investigation, it is not assumed that there is a political background" to the incident.
An eyewitness at the scene told Reuters they saw several people on the ground, including two whom medics appeared to be attempting to resuscitate.
Local media outlets, citing witnesses, said some had seen a black SUV drive at high speed from an area where a parade was taking place, hitting people and leaving several seriously wounded.
This breaking news story will be updated.
