Past investigations would need to be revisited, German police

German authorities are facing questions about security and what they knew about the suspect accused of using an access lane for emergency vehicles to drive into a Christmas market in Magdeburg, killing five people and injuring more than 200.

On a visit on Saturday, politicians were heckled by members of the public, some seemingly outraged by what was criticised as a security lapse.

German authorities have defended the market’s layout and security.

Authorities are also fielding questions after reports they were warned last year about the suspect, with police saying they had evaluated whether the suspect might be a threat a year ago.

Some people seemed enraged by a perceived lapse in security. Others appeared simply annoyed and irritated in general at Germany’s political leaders.

Security has ramped up at Christmas markets across Germany since a similar attack in Berlin in 2016 when a man drove a lorry into a market crowd, killing 12 people.

Open-plan Christmas markets now have some sort of barrier around them — typically large concrete blocks, which is the case in Magdeburg.

However, the gap in the barriers was large enough to allow emergency vehicles to pass through.

City official Ronni Krug told reporters at a press conference on Saturday that emergency responders needed an evacuation route in case of a “conventional” emergency, and all the relevant agencies approved the plan.

“A safety and security concept must, on the one hand, protect those visiting an event as much as possible, but also needs to ensure, at the same time, if something does happen, they are able to leave the site safely and rapidly”, he said.

“Perhaps it is something that could not have been prevented”, he added.

German media reported that before the attack, there had been warnings into a potential threat from the suspect.

On a visit on Saturday, politicians were heckled by members of the public, some seemingly outraged by what was criticised as a security lapse.

German authorities have defended the market’s layout and security.

Authorities are also fielding questions after reports they were warned last year about the suspect, with police saying they had evaluated whether the suspect might be a threat a year ago.

The suspect has been ordered into pre-trial detention on counts of murder, attempted murder and dangerous bodily harm.

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Usually at this time of the year, German city centres are full of shoppers and revellers drinking mulled wine, but this year the mood is very different.

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