Berlin terror attack: Horrifying dashcam video shows truck speeding into Christmas market

  • 12 dead and dozens injured at Berlin market
  • German police hunt Tunisian man Anis Amri, 24
  • Suspect was investigated over earlier plot
  • Everything we know about suspect Anis Amri
  • Dashcam video shows moments truck speeds into Christmas market

Video has emerged from a car-mounted dashcam appearing to show the moment a truck drove into the Berlin Christmas market on Monday in an attack that killed 12 people.

The video, obtained by Reuters, was taken by a taxi driver who was waiting for customers just outside the Christmas market at the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church.

In the video, the truck is seen speeding from left to right into Breitscheidplatz, where the Christmas market is at the foot of the church. People come running out from the direction of the market shortly after the truck speeds into the square.

The video's release came as it was claimed that Anis Amri, the suspect in the attacks, was overheard by German intelligence offering to carry out a “suicide attack” several months ago.

But despite the alarming nature of the offer the order was not given to arrest Amri and investigators wrote him off as an “errand boy”.

A CCTV image shows what is believed to be Anis Amri at the Berlin-Moabit mosque shortly after the attack on the Christmas market
A CCTV image shows what is believed to be Anis Amri at the Berlin-Moabit mosque shortly after the attack on the Christmas market Credit: RBB

A surveillance team monitoring the phones of a well-known extremist preacher and his inner circle intercepted a call from Amri in which he made the offer, according to Germany’s highly respected Spiegel magazine.

The claim came as police raided apartments and mosque complexes across Germany in a manhunt for the 24-year-old Tunisian, who is believed to be armed and dangerous. Prosecutors said they had found Amri’s fingerprints on the driver’s door and side of the lorry which ploughed into a crowded Christmas market in Berlin on Monday night, killing 12 people and injuring 49.

“We believe that Anis Amri was steering the truck," Frauke Köhler, a spokesman for federal prosecutors, said.

“We can tell you today that there are additional indications that this suspect is with high probability the actual perpetrator,” Thomas de Maiziere, the German interior minister said.

“Fingerprints were found in the cab, and there are other, additional indications that suggest this. It is all the more important that the search is successful as soon as possible.”

The day began with pre-dawn raids in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where Amri made an application for asylum that was rejected and spent much of his time in Germany before moving to Berlin.

Elite police stormed flats and houses in several towns and cities, in one location blowing the door off an apartment. But they were unable to locate Amri.

But it was claims that the German authorities were aware of the threat Amri posed several months before the attack that threatened to be most explosive.

The usually well informed Spiegel, which often publishes details leaked from inside official investigations, claimed that police knew Amri wanted to carry out an attack, but that he was never taken seriously as a threat.

The claims were supported by a report in Focus, a rival publication, that a regular informant warned police Amri was planning an attack as long ago as July, but that he was allowed to slip away.

Both sets of claims centre on the immediate circle of Abu Walaa, an Iraqi also known as “the faceless preacher” who is one of Germany’s most notorious jihadist preachers.

Abu Walaa, whose real name is Ahmad Abdulaziz Abdullah A, was arrested in November on charges of recruiting volunteers to travel to the Middle East to fight for Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

According to the reports, Amri was in contact with Abu Walaa and a number of others in his immediate circle who were also arrested in November.

He even had a key to the Dortmund apartment of another preacher in the group, named only as Boban S.

It was Amri’s proximity to this group of preachers based in the cities of North Rhine-Westphalia that first put him on the radar of anti-terror police, according to Spiegel.

As early as February this year, he was put on a list of individuals to be investigated as far as legally possible.

It was when prosecutors were preparing their case against Abu Walaa and his group that a surveillance team stumbled on the information that could have prevented the Berlin attack.

A team monitoring the group’s phones picked up a call in which Amri offered to carry out a “suicide attack”.

Around the same time, a regular informant separately warned police in North Rhine-Westphalia that Amri was openly talking about plans for an attack, according to Focus.

The informant, who was inside Abu Walaa’s circle, warned police on July 21 that Amri wanted to carry out an attack in Germany. But it appears neither warning was taken seriously enough. No order was given to arrest Amri.

He was not on the list of targets in federal prosecutors’ case against Abu Walaa. According to Spiegel, prosecutors wrote him off as an “errand boy”. But they did pass his file to police in Berlin, where Amri was by then living.

Berlin police believed he was planning a robbery to finance the purchase of weapons for a terror attack, and put him under surveillance.

But the surveillance teams found no evidence of a planned attack, and the surveillance was called off.

There was one more opportunity to stop Amri, when he was stopped by police on the other side of Germany, near Lake Constance in the far south, for carrying a false Italian passport.

The local authorites in Ravensburg detained him so he could be deported. But the refugee office where he had made his rejected asylum application in North Rhine-Westphalia ordered his release.

Amri couldn’t be deported as he didn’t have the right identity papers, and Tunisia was disputing that he was its national. After the Berlin surveillance was dropped, Amri seems to have disappeared.

The next police knew of him was when a forensics team investigating the lorry that ploughed into the Christmas market found his identity papers under the driver’s seat. And by then, it was too late.

                                                                                                    

Two women named among the 12 dead as authorities turn to DNA to identify victims 

By Justin Huggler in Berlin:

A 31-year-old woman from Italy and a 60-year-old woman from Israel have been named among the victims of the Berlin Christmas market terror attack.

Three days after a lorry ploughed into a Christmas market in the heart of the city, killing 12 and injuring 49, details of the victims finally began to emerge.

Fabrizia Di Lorenzo

Fabrizia Di Lorenzo, a 31-year-old Italian woman who had been missing since the attack, was confirmed among the dead yesterday (THU).

Angelino Alfano, the Italian foreign minister, said German authorities had identified Miss Di Lorenzo’s remains among the victims.

Fears were first raised for Miss Di Lorenzo, who had lived and worked in Berlin for several years, when she failed to answer messages from anxious relatives. Her mobile phone was found at the scene of the attack.

“Italy commemorates Fabrizia Di Lorenzo, a model citizen killed by the terrorists. The country is deeply moved by the pain of the family," Paolo Gentiloni, the Italian prime minister, wrote on Twitter.

Dalia Elyakim, a 60-year-old Israeli woman who was visiting Berlin with her husband, was also confirmed among the dead.

Her husband, Rami, was seriously injured in the attack and is recovering in hospital after undergoing emergency surgery.

The couple, from the Israeli city of Herzliya, were visiting Berlin as tourists.

Reuven Rivlin, the Israeli president, said he received the  news of Ms Elyakim’s death “with great sadness”.

“From here I send my sympathies and offer strength to her family who are by the bedside of her husband Rami, who was seriously injured in the attack, and we pray for his speedy recovery,” he said. 

Many of the dead have had to be identified with DNA, such is the condition of the bodies. 

German authorities say they have so far identified six Germans among the 12 dead. They have not been named, in accordance with German privacy laws. 

They include a 32-year-old man from Brandenburg an der Havel and a 53-year-old woman from Dahme-Spreewald.

The dead also include Lukasz Urban, the Polish driver whose body was found inside the lorry. It is believed he was stabbed and then shot dead as he struggled to prevent the attack.

Two arrested on suspicion of plotting to attack Germany's largest shopping mall, local reports

Two brothers from Kosovo have been arrested by German police on suspicion of plotting to attack the country's largest shopping mall in Oberhausen, near the Dutch border, local media reports.

The men, aged 28 and 31, were arrested in Duisburg with Germany on high alert following the attack on the Christmas market in Berlin.

More here

Christmas day terror plot folded in Australia

The Telegraph's Jonathan Pearlman from Sydney:

Police in Australia have arrested a group of Islamic radicals believed to be planning an “evil” terrorist attack at numerous landmarks in the centre of Melbourne, possibly on Christmas Day.

The plotters are believed to have included six men and one woman, all in their 20s, who allegedly planned to plant bombs and use knives and firearms to launch a “multi-node” attack at Federation Square, Flinders Street Station and St Paul's Cathedral, some of the best-known and busiest sites in the city.

Properties searched in hunt for Amri, but no arrests - prosecutor

From the Associated Press:

German federal prosecutors say they have searched properties in western Germany and in Berlin where truck attack suspect Anis Amri is believed to have spent time.

Prosecutors' spokeswoman Frauke Koehler told reporters there were searches at "various locations" in North Rhine-Westphalia state and in the capital on Thursday. Authorities also checked a bus in the southwestern German city of Heilbronn after receiving a tip. They haven't yet made any arrests.

Koehler said Amri's fingerprints have been found on the driver's door and on the side of the truck. She added: "We believe that Anis Amri was steering the truck."

Prosecutors issued a formal arrest warrant against Amri. That formality will enable them to hold him pending a possible indictment once he is arrested.

Merkel hopes for arrest of perpetrator soon

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German chancellor Angela Merkel has addressed the media.

Mrs Merkel says she hopes for the arrest of the perpetrator of the Berlin attack soon.

At the same press conference German interior minister Thomas de Maizière confirmed that the Tunisian suspect Anis Amri's fingerprints were found in the cab of the truck.

Police 'aware of plot as long ago as July'

Police were aware that Anis Amri was planning some sort of attack in Germany as long ago as July, according to Germany's Focus magazine.

The magazine claims an unnamed police informant reported on July 21 that Amri had spoken repeatedly about plans for an attack in the tight inner circle of Abu Walaa, an extremist preacher.

Abu Walaa, also known as "the faceless preacher", was later arrested in November and is being held on charges of recruiting volunteers to fight for Isil in the Middle East.

The Focus report claims that a regular informant told the North Rhine-Westphalia Landeskrininalamr, the equivalent of CID, that Amri was talking about the plans.

Shortly after Amri disappeared from the circle around Abu Walaa. He had been living in Berlin since February. 

German Justice Minister Heiko Maas, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere arrive at the Federal Criminal Police Office in Berlin on December 22, 2016 to get informed on the stage of investigation of the Berlin attack Credit: TOBIAS SCHWARZ/ AFP/Getty Images

 

Police operation shuts down trains in Prenzlauer Berg

There is a police operation under way in Prenzlauer Berg, a district in the north-east of Berlin.

Part of a shopping centre is closed and underground trains and the tram have stopped running, according to German newspaper Tagesspiegel. 

It is understood police are investigating a suspicious package.

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Amri 'offered to carry out a suicide attack' months ago

Anis Amri offered to carry out a suicide attack several months ago, according to Spiegel magazine.

The offer was picked up in telephone surveillance of extremist preachers who were under investigation.

Despite the alarming nature of the offer it was not considered grounds for arrest. 

Theresa May urges Britons not to allow attack to stop them enjoying Christmas

Theresa May has urged Britons not to allow the terror attack on a German Christmas market to stop them enjoying the festive season as usual.

The Prime Minister said it was important for the UK to send out a message that "we will not be cowed by the terrorists".

In a newspaper interview, Mrs May said concern over the incident should not deter people from getting on with usual visits to shops and entertainment venues in London.

"Of course our thoughts are with those who have been affected by the terrible attack that took place in Berlin but Londoners should go about their business as usual," she said.

"They should enjoy this Christmas period.

"It is important, I think, that we send a very clear message that we will not be cowed by the terrorists - that we will carry on with our lives as usual."

The Prime Minister paid tribute to Britain's security agencies and police for the work they do keeping the public safe from terror attacks, hailing them as "unsung heroes".

Video surfaces online claiming to show Berlin attack suspect

Video has emerged purporting to show Anis Amri in Berlin earlier this year. It was posted to Facebook by Bellingcat.

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Amri's fingerprints 'found on door of truck'

German media is reporting Anis Amri's fingerprints were allegedly found on the door of the truck used in the attack.

Attack may have been planned for months

The attack may have been planned for several months, according to a report in German newspaper Welt.

Intelligence sources say jihadist circles in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia were talking about a possible truck attack in Berlin as long ago as May.

Meanwhile comments made by Thomas de Maiziere, the German interior minister, before the attack are being seen as evidence intelligence circles may have been aware of the danger.

"If we get to the end of the Chistmas markets without an attack, I'll make three crosses," Mr de Maiziere is reported to have said at a ministry meeting one week before the attack.

The alleged comment may have been no more than general concern: Germany's Christmas markets have been seen as vulnerable for some time, and were being talked of as a potential target last year, in the wake of the Paris attacks.

Berlin Christmas market reopens

The Berlin Christmas market that was attacked has reopened to the public three days after the deadly attack.

Concrete blocks have been put in place at the roadside to heighten security.

Organizers decided to reopen the market next to the central Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, though without party music or bright lighting.

Berliners and visitors have laid candles and flowers at the site in tribute.

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British lorry driver launches appeal for family of Polish driver

Matthew Day in Warsaw reports:

A British lorry driver has launched an appeal to raise money for the family of Lukasz Urban, the Polish lorry-driver murdered in the Berlin terrorist attack.

In a post on gofundme, a crowd-sourcing website, David Duncan, from Otley, wrote: “As a fellow trucker, I decided to reach out to the trucking community and beyond to help in some small way. No amount of money will bring Lukasz back, but hopefully it will help his family do whatever they need to do.

“RIP Lukasz.....from The Truckers of The UK and beyond,” he concluded.

By Thursday morning 2,795 donors had contributed £36,100 to the fund, closing down on the target set by Mr Duncan of £50,000.

French border controls put in place

Telegraph Paris correspondent David Chazan reports:

France has re-introduced controls on its border with Germany and has beefed up security at Christmas markets in the wake of the Berlin attack.

The Schengen agreement on free movement allows the temporary re-establishment of border controls.

The French authorities are also rounding up suspected extremists believed to have links with terrorist groups and have made “several preventative arrests,” according to the government spokesman, Stéphane Le Foll.

Security at churches is also being strengthened over the holidays, particularly on Christmas Day.

Some churches are asking for volunteers to act as guards and search worshippers before they enter.

France remains in a state of emergency imposed after the Paris attacks in November 2015, and thousands of armed police and soldiers continue to patrol major cities and guard potential targets such as tourist sites.

The interior minister, Bruno Le Roux, has ordered police to “review security at all locations likely to attract crowds for end-of-year celebrations”. 

In the Catholic churches of Cannes, some 30 armed police officers will guard 10 services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Police chief Yves Daros said: “The officers will have portable metal detectors and will search bags as people go in. It’s to reduce the risk of attacks, and also to make people feel safer.”

Two or three officers will stand guard outside during services. Anglican and other Protestant churches will also be protected. Church entrances will be monitored by CCTV in the resort town, where the Berlin attack has revived memories of the Bastille Day massacre in nearby Nice in July.

Nice itself will remain under high security throughout the holidays.

In Brussels, the European Commission proposed a series of measures aimed at hindering the financing of terror attacks by making it easier for the authorities to trace and block suspicious money transfers.

The Commission is also proposing new legislation to make it possible to freeze a suspect’s accounts throughout the EU.

German prosecutor denies arrest report

A spokesman for the German chief federal prosecutor has denied a media report saying that there had been four arrests of people who had contact with the Tunisian suspect in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

"No, that's not the case," the spokesman said when asked about the report. "We do not know of any arrest".

Four people arrested in connection with Berlin attack suspect -Bild

Germany's chief federal prosecutor has confirmed the arrests of four people who had contact with Tunisian suspect Anis Amri, German newspaper Bild is reporting.

Amri's brother urges him to turn himself in to police

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A brother of the fugitive Tunisian suspected in Berlin's deadly Christmas market attack is urging Anis Amri to turn himself in to police.

Amri's family members, speaking from his hometown of Oueslatia in central Tunisia, were shaken to learn he's the prime suspect in Monday's truck attack, which killed 12.

Amri, who turned 24 on Thursday, left Tunisia years ago for Europe but had been in regular contact with his brothers via Facebook and phone.

Brother Abdelkader Amri told The Associated Press, "I ask him to turn himself into the police. If it is proved that he is involved, we dissociate ourselves from it."

Abdelkader said Anis may have been radicalised in prison in Italy, where he went after leaving Tunisia in the wake of the Arab Spring uprisings.

Anis Amri - a timeline

Anis Amri

February 2011

Flees to Italy after being charged with armed robbery in home country of Tunisia. Claims asylum as a minor.

Sent to prison for four years after committing a series of crimes, including reportedly burning down a school.

Spring 2015

Released from Palermo’s Ucciardone prison. Ordered to be expelled and taken to an expulsion centre at Caltanisetta to await recognition by Tunisian authorities.

July 2015

Expulsion order to Tunisia expires without necessary recognition from Tunisia. Amri is ordered to leave Italy and travels to Germany, entering at Freiburg, near the border with Switzerland and France. 

Lives for some time in the southern state of Baden-Württemberg, before moving north to the state of North Rhine-Westphalia where he claims asylum.

February 2016

Takes up residence in Berlin

March 14, 2016

German authorities launch investigation following a tip off that Amri may be planning a break-in to finance the purchase of automatic weapons for use in an attack.

June 2016

Asylum claim is rejected. German authorities prepare to deport him but lack necessary identification documents.

August 2016

Arrested in Germany. Reports suggest he had been involved in a fight or had been caught with forged documents.

German authorities request identification documents from Tunisia to deport Amri.

September 2016

Surveillance of Amri called off with no evidence he was planning to buy a gun. Surveillance shows him dealing drugs and being involved in a bar brawl. Amri disappears from his regular haunts in Berlin. 

November 2016

German police arrest extremists Abu Walaa, Hassan C and Boban S, all of whom had links to Amri. Security services exchange information about Amri and federal police issue a warning that he poses a danger.

Dec 21, 2016

Germany names Amri as suspect behind Christmas market attack as Tunisia delivers necessary documentation for his deportation.

Anti-refugee protests met by hundreds more counter-demonstrators

 An anti-refugee protest by the far-right National Democratic Party encountered a flock of counter-demonstrators in an act of solidarity with refugees at the site of the Berlin lorry attack.

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More about Anis Amri's links with Abu Walaa

The Telegraph's Justin Huggler tells us more about Anis Amri's links with Abu Walaa:

Claims have emerged that Anis Amri, the suspect in the Berlin terror attack, had links with Abu Walaa, a well-known jihadist preacher who was arrested in Germany last month.

According to details leaked to the German media, Amri was known to be in close contact with Abu Walaa and other members of his circle who were arrested in November, and may even have lived with one for some time.

Abu Walaa, an Iraqi whose real name is Ahmad Abdulaziz Abdullah A, is better known as “the faceless preacher” in Germany because he never shows his face in his videos.

Abu Walaa is known as "the faceless preacher"

He is one of the few extremist preachers in Germany openly to declare his support for Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) and to praise atrocities carried out by the group.

He was arrested on suspicion of recruiting volunteers to travel to the Middle East to fight for Isil. Until now, he has not been linked to any acts of terror on European soil.

According to a report in Bild newspaper, Amri was seen in his company earlier this year.

He reportedly had closer links to another man among those arrested on the same charges together with Abu Walaa, who has been named only as Boban S,

Amri may have lived with Boban S for some time in the city of Dortmund, according to Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

He was also seen at a travel agency in Duisburg where another extremist preacher named as Hasan C lived, according to Bild.

Hasan C, who was also arrested in November, has been linked to the radicalisation of three German teens currently on trial over the bombing of a Sikh house of prayer in Essen that injured three people.

While Amri’s alleged links with this network have not been officially confirmed, they may shed some light on his decision to go underground earlier this month.

That would have come a matter of weeks after the unexpected arrest of Abu Walaa and the others in a series of coordinated raids across Germany.

Israeli woman feared dead named

The Israeli woman who has been missing since the attack and feared to be among the victims has been named locally as Dalia Elyakim.

Mrs Elyakim, 60, was visiting Berlin as a tourist together with her husband, who has been named as Rami Elyakim.

The husband, who is also 60, was seriously injured in the attack and had to undergo two emergency operations on Tuesday night.

The couple's son and daughter arrived in Berlin on Tuesday night, the Times of Israel reported.

The children of the couple visited their father in the hospital where he remains in serious but stable condition, the Hebrew-language Walla website reported on Wednesday. They also reportedly gave DNA samples to assist in identifying their mother.

“I can confirm that two Israelis were affected by the attack,” Yakov Hadas-Handelsman, the Israeli ambassador to Germany, said. "A man, in his mid-sixties, was severely injured at the hip. He was operated on all night. He is out of danger.

"His wife, who was with him on the Christmas market, is missing so far. We hope she is in another hospital, but so far cannot rule out that is among the deceased."

Italian survivor: I looked death in the face

As dramatic accounts of near-escapes by survivors of the attack continue to emerge, an Italian man says he “looked death in the face” and it is a “miracle” he and his wife survived.

Giuseppe La Grassa, 34, was on holiday celebrating his wedding anniversary and his birthday and described how close his wife Elisabetta came to being killed.

Elisabetta Ragno and Giuseppe La Grassa survived the attack Credit: Repubblica.tv

He said: “It is miracle my wife is alive. She was about to go and get a sandwich, but then she delayed a moment and was passed by a girl. The girl was killed, run down by the lorry.”

Mr La Grassa was hit by the back end of the lorry and needed 25 stitches in a facial wound.

Berlin police ask for help in Arabic, Dari, Farsi and Hurdu

Berlin police have asked the "Arab community" for help finding Berlin attack suspect Anis Amri.

In a post shared on social media police issued the public plea for information about the Tunisian man in Arabic, Dari, Farsi and Hurdu.

"We publish the plea for help in a few selected languages. We would be very grateful if you could share any relevant information. We ask for your help."

 

Catalogue of blunders that left 'Berlin terrorist' free to kill

The Telegraph's own Gordon Rayner, Justin Huggler and James Rothwell reconstruct how Anis Amri slipped through the grasp of German police:

The prime suspect for the Berlin massacre was under covert surveillance for months as a possible terrorist threat until police let him slip through their grasp earlier this month.

Anis Amri, 24, a Tunisian asylum seeker who arrived in Germany last year, was investigated for “preparing a serious crime endangering national safety”, involving funding the purchase of automatic weapons for use in a terrorist attack.

Amri had been arrested earlier this year and was known to be a supporter of the terrorist group thought to be behind the Sousse terrorist attack in Tunisia, as well as being a suspected disciple of a notorious hate preacher.

Read the full story here

Breitscheidplatz "returned" to Berliners

Berlin Police have announced that the forensic work at the Christmas market has been completed.

"We can return Breitscheidplatz to the Berlin public #WirSindBerlin (we are Berlin)" 

 

Police raid two apartments in Berlin

German police commandos raided two apartments in the Berlin neighbourhood of Kreuzberg but did not find the suspect, the Die Welt newspaper reported.

It said investigators believed that Anis Amri may have been in one of the two apartments but he was not.

Police had to overpower a man at one of the apartments, the newspaper reported.

Donald Trump says he has been 'proven right'

Donald Trump said the attack had proven him to be correct about his plans to impose curbs on Muslims immigrating to the United States.

Mr Trump was asked by reporters outside his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, if the violence would affect his consideration of a ban on Muslims entering the United States or of a registry for immigrants from Muslim countries.

He said: "You know my plans. All along, I've been proven to be right. 100 per cent correct." 

Amri used six aliases

A European arrest warrant for Amri showed he used six different aliases and three different nationalities.

It named Anis Amri as having Tunisian citizenship, born in the town of Ghaza, but also listed half a dozen names, many of them variants of his real name, along with claimed Egyptian and Lebanese citizenship. 

A police picture of Anis Amri

 

Suspect 'inspired by hate preachers'

Bild newspaper reports that Amri had repeatedly contacted Islamist "hate preachers" including the Iraqi Ahmad Abdelazziz A, alias Abu Walaa, who has since been arrested and accused of supporting Islamic State.

Amri had reportedly searched for people to join him in an attack as early as the spring of this year and once tried to buy a pistol from an undercover police officer, an investigator was quoted as telling Bild. 

More than 4,000 Tunisians have left to join Islamic State and other militant groups overseas, recruited by hardline preachers or online networks.

Tunisia was hit last year by three major militant attacks, two targeting foreign tourists, by gunmen who spent time in jihadist camps overseas.

Amri's family in Tunisia 'in shock'

In Tunisia Amri's sister Najoua tells AFP: "I can't believe my brother could do such a thing. He never made us feel there was anything wrong. We were in touch through Facebook and he was always smiling and cheerful."

His brother Abdelkader said: "When I saw the picture of my brother in the media, I couldn't believe my eyes. I'm in shock, and can't believe it's him who committed this crime."

But, he added, "if he's guilty, he deserves every condemnation. We reject terrorism and terrorists - we have no dealings with terrorists." 

Suspect had been under surveillance for months

German authorities said the suspect had been under covert surveillance for several months this year.

Berlin prosecutors told The Associated Press in a statement that they launched an investigation against Amri on March 14 followed a tip from federal security agencies.

The tip warned that Amri, who was considered a potential threat by authorities in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, might be planning a break-in to finance the purchase of automatic weapons for use in an attack.

Surveillance showed that Amri was involved in drug dealing in a Berlin park and involved in a bar brawl, but no evidence to substantiate the original warning. The observation was called off in September. 

Donald Trump condemns 'attack on humanity'

US President-elect Donald Trump condemned "an attack against humanity".

Mr Trump on Monday blamed terrorists who "continually slaughter Christians in their communities and places of worship as part of their global jihad".

Asked about that statement by reporters outside his Mar-A-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on Wednesday, he said: "It's an attack on humanity, and it's gotta be stopped. What's happening is disgraceful."

Mr Trump said he has not talked to President Barack Obama since the Berlin attack.

Further reports suspect had convictions in Tunisia and Italy

Tunisia's Mosaique FM radio reports that the man being sought had previous convictions in Italy and his home country.

Mosaique FM quoted Anis Amri's father saying that his son left Tunisia about seven years ago and spent four years in a prison in Italy after being accused over a fire at a school.

He then moved to Germany more than a year ago. The father did not provide details and said he had no contact with his son, although his brothers did.

Mosaique FM quoted Tunisian security officials as saying that Amri was also convicted in absentia for aggravated theft with violence and sentenced to five years in prison. 

Key developments on Wednesday

  • German authorities say the suspect in Monday's deadly truck attack in Berlin was under covert surveillance for several months this year.
  • German authorities are offering a reward of up to 100,000 euros ($105,000) for the arrest of the Tunisian man suspected of involvement in the fatal attack on a Christmas market.
  • Berlin's city government says 12 people are still being treated for very serious injuries after the truck attack.

To read events as they unfolded on Wednesday click here.

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