Berlin car attack intended to divide Germany, says chancellor

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the car-ramming incident carried out by a driver into a crowd of revelers during the Christopher Street Day event in Berlin as "an attack on our society and aimed at dividing the country."

Merz said on his X account, "What a heinous act in Berlin! Hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world were celebrating Christopher Street Day peacefully. They wanted us to treat each other with kindness and tolerance... This is an attack on our society."

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A spokesperson for the German government said that Chancellor Merz was informed of the incident immediately after it occurred, noting that he is in close contact with the German interior minister and is receiving continuous updates from security agencies on the situation.

The German interior minister said: "This cowardly and brutal attack on people who were celebrating peacefully has deeply shaken me. My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all who witnessed this crime."

As part of efforts to clarify the circumstances of the incident, Berlin police published a photo of a suspect and issued a public appeal for help in locating him.

The incident left at least one person dead and 16 others injured after a car plowed into a crowd on the sidelines of a Pride parade during Christopher Street Day in Berlin on Saturday.