Berlin attack: Police uncertain detained suspect drove lorry

German police say they are unsure if a man they have in custody was behind Monday`s lorry attack in Berlin that killed 12 and wounded 48 others.

"It is in fact uncertain whether that really was the driver," Berlin police head Klaus Kandt said on Tuesday.

The man detained, who has denied involvement, arrived in Germany from Pakistan at the end of last year.

He was captured in a park after reportedly fleeing the popular Christmas market in west Berlin.

Mrs Merkel has vowed to punish those responsible for the Berlin attack "as harshly as the law requires".

Her open-door policy on migration, which saw 890,000 asylum seekers arrive in Germany last year, has divided the country, with critics calling it a security threat.

Three separate terrorist attacks in July carried out by refugees had already heightened tensions.

What happened?

The lorry ploughed through the popular market at Breitscheidplatz, near west Berlin`s main shopping street, the Kurfuerstendamm.

Loaded with steel beams, it veered into the market at 20:14 local time (19:14 GMT), crashing through wooden huts and stands packed with tourists and locals.
Police believe the lorry drove 50-80 metres (160-260 ft) through the market area, Germany`s DPA news agency reports.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said 18 of the 48 people injured were in a serious condition.
What do we know about the suspect?

Doubts are being cast over whether he really was the driver of the lorry, with Berlin police tweeting for people to stay alert.

He arrived in Germany on 31 December of last year, turning up in Berlin in February, Mr de Maiziere said. His asylum application had not been completed.

Citing security sources, German media identified him as Naved B, 23, who was reportedly known to police for minor crimes, but not terrorist links.
Early on Tuesday, special forces stormed a hangar at Berlin`s defunct Tempelhof airport, where they believed he had been living in a shelter.

He was seized after fleeing the scene on foot for more than a mile (2km) towards the Tiergarten, a large public park.

A witness who followed him called the police, who quickly detained the suspect near the Victory Column monument.
Where did the lorry come from?

Police say a Polish man, believed to be the original driver, was found dead on the passenger seat.
Ariel Zurawski, the Polish owner of the lorry, confirmed his driver had been missing since 16:00 (15:00 GMT) on Monday.

The lorry was registered in Poland but it is unclear whether it was travelling from Poland or returning from Italy, as some reports suggest.

How has Germany reacted?

Chancellor Merkel said she was "shocked and very saddened", adding: "We don`t want to live with fear of evil."

Germany`s interior ministry said Christmas markets in Berlin would remain closed on Tuesday but other markets outside of the capital would operate as normal.
A senior member of Germany`s anti-immigration AfD party, Marcus Pretzell, blamed Mrs Merkel, linking the attack to her open-door migration policy.

Horst Seehofer, the leader of Mrs Merkel`s sister party in Bavaria, urged the chancellor "to rethink our immigration and security policy and to change it".

What do witnesses say happened?

A British witness, Mike Fox, told the Associated Press news agency that the 25-tonne lorry had missed him by only about three metres as it smashed through stands.

"It was definitely deliberate," the tourist said.

Australian Trisha O`Neill told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation: "I just saw this huge black truck speeding through the markets crushing so many people and then all the lights went out and everything was destroyed."

Source : BBC