Germany Van Attack 'Not A Terror Attack': Three Confirmed Dead And Twenty Injured

Police in Münster, Germany said at least three people, including the driver, were killed and 20 people injured when a van ran into a crowd in the city's center.

The perpetrator is believed to have been a German man in his 40s who was the driver of the vehicle. He has not yet been officially identified, and he died after shooting himself at the scene.

"Some people have died and some have been injured," Münster police wrote on Twitter. Police spokesman Andreas Bode told reporters that 20 people had been injured and six of them were in critical condition. The incident occurred near a popular pub which is reportedly frequented by tourists and locals alike and was especially busy with many people enjoying a warm sunny day. The city of Münster is located in Germany's north-west, has a population of about 300,000.

Authorities have said there is no indication that this incident is an Islamist terror attack. German daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung reported the suspect had been born in 1969 and that police were searching his apartment for possible explosives but more details are yet to be released. The suspect's motive and exact identity still remains unclear, but German media reported the attacker had a history of mental health problems.

Germany's  state interior minister Herbert Reul confirmed the initial reports. "The perpetrator who recklessly sped into a crowd of people after 3:00 pm is, according to the current stage of the investigation, a German citizen and not, as has been claimed everywhere, a refugee or something like that," Reul, of North Rhine-Westphalia state, told reporters. "There is no indication at the moment that there is any Islamist connection," he said, after correcting the number of total dead down to three including the driver, who shot himself.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a statement she was "deeply shaken" by the incident. "Everything possible is now being done to clarify the facts and to support the victims and their relatives," she added.

French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his condolences on on Twitter, writing: "All my thoughts are with the victims of the attack in Münster. France shares in the suffering of Germany."

The incident comes at a time of a heightened concern in Germany and the rest of Europe, following a spate of jihadist attacks using vehicles to kill pedestrians in the UK, France and Sweden. Germany has seen a number of jihadist attacks in recent years. The latest was the December 2016 attack in which a lorry was driven into a crowd at a Christmas market in the capital city, Berlin.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 08, 2018 07:06 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).