TEHRAN – The Iranian Foreign Ministry has issued a condemnation of a violent car attack at a bustling Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, which left at least five people dead and over 200 injured.

Esmaeil Baqaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, expressed deep sympathy for the families of the victims and conveyed wishes for a swift recovery to those injured. In his remarks on Saturday, Baqaei joined a chorus of international voices denouncing the attack and offering support to the affected community.  

The attack occurred on Friday when a black BMW plowed through a crowd at high speed, causing chaos and devastation in the market located approximately 130 kilometers southwest of Berlin.  

The suspect, identified as a 50-year-old Saudi Arabian national who had been living in Germany since 2006, was apprehended at the scene. Authorities later revealed that the man was a psychiatrist who had worked at a rehabilitation clinic for criminal offenders with addictions in Bernburg. According to a clinic spokesperson, he had been on sick and holiday leave since October.  

Tamara Zieschang, Saxony-Anhalt’s Interior Minister, confirmed the suspect was previously unknown to German security services. 

Local media reports uncovered a series of posts on the suspect’s account on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that expressed anti-Islam sentiments and support for individuals who had left the Muslim faith. The suspect reportedly described himself as a former Muslim.  

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz publicly condemned the attack, calling it “terrible” and “insane,” and pledged full support to the victims and their families. Speaking on Saturday, Scholz emphasized that such acts of violence have no place in German society.  

The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs also released a statement on X, extending its solidarity to the German people and the families of the victims. 

'US attacks targeting Sana’a illegal'

In another statement published on Sunday, Baqaei condemned the recent U.S. airstrikes targeting Sana’a, labeling them as flagrant violations of international law.  

The Iranian spokesperson stated that the repeated U.S. attacks on Yemen breach international humanitarian principles and the United Nations Charter, describing the actions as war crimes.  

He also commended the Yemeni people's steadfast solidarity with Palestine, emphasizing that their support stems from a deep commitment to defending the oppressed against occupation and genocide.  

The spokesperson urged the Islamic world, regional nations, and the United Nations to take decisive action against the continued aggression by the United States, the United Kingdom, and Israel in Yemen.

Issuing a statement on X social media platform on Saturday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that its forces conducted precision airstrikes against a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility of Ansarullah in Sana'a, Yemen.

CENTCOM forces also shot down several Ansarullah unmanned aerial vehicles and an anti-ship cruise missile over the Red Sea, according to a report from TASS.