BERLIN — Parts of central Berlin were deserted Tuesday night as Germans live in fear of more terror attacks.
Police have identified a Tunisian refugee called Anis A. as the primary suspect in the attack on a Christmas market, where 12 were killed and 48 injured. The market, a place that’s usually full of lights and people celebrating the holidays, remained closed Tuesday and had turned into a ghost town with only a few mourning visitors overnight.
Streets surrounding the market remain closed. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
The otherwise vibrant Christmas market in Berlin was deserted Tuesday. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
Shops were shut down after the attack. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
Berliners came out to show solidarity with the victims and condemn the attacks. Visitors were shaken by the event, but said they won’t let it affect their everyday life.
“I have two kids so I’m scared about their future, maybe,” Marek Kalina told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “But we have to live our lives and it makes us stronger I hope, because it brings us together.” (RELATED: Berlin Police Launch Manhunt For Tunisian Refugee Suspect)
Some children used the candle light memorials to ask Santa for a Germany without terror.
A woman lays down a rose in remembrance of the attack’s victims. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
One of many memorial sites at the Christmas market in Berlin. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
The area is guarded by a heavy police presence and some streets in the area are closed off to the public.
Streets surrounding the market remain closed. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
Armed police officers guard the Christmas market. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
Police vans surround the market. (Jacob Bojesson/TheDCNF)
The market circles around the iconic Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, which was badly damaged from a bombing during World War II.
The market circles around Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. (Jacob Bojesson/The DCNF)
Several minor terror attacks have taken place in Germany throughout the year. Konstantin Wendel, a tour guide at the church, has seen the threat gradually rise over the past few years.
“ISIS try to show that they’re here and it’s awful,” Wendel told TheDCNF. “Five years ago, we didn’t have this threat.”
Wendel looks at the attack as a direct assault on not just German culture, but the Christian religion. German churches are much harder targets, according to Wendel, as they’ve increased security significantly in recent years.
“There are always people at Christmas markets and they choose places where they have a crowd of people,” Wendel said. “There are a lot of churches that are guarded and that’s completely different. Two years ago we didn’t have that situation. For example the Dome of Berlin, it isn’t easy to bring your bags in there.”
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