One person died and at least 29 were injured, some critically, after a van drove into a crowd near a large public festival in central Berlin on Saturday evening, German police said.
Authorities launched a manhunt after the attack, which took place in the city's Tiergarten park near the Brandenburg Gate, and said they had identified a suspect.
Police announced on Sunday afternoon that the suspect – Abdul Ballout, a German citizen of Lebanese heritage with ties to Islamist extremism – had been shot and killed by officers.
Bild newspaper had earlier reported that Mr Ballout had visited the Middle East last year in a failed attempt to join ISIS, before being convicted in Germany of “preparing a serious act of subversive violence”.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged Germans to reject division and intimidation. “We will think about consequences, we will defend our freedom,” he told a media conference.
Hundreds of thousands of people had gathered in Berlin for a major annual festival before the incident brought celebrations to an abrupt end.
A fire brigade official said eight of the injured suffered serious wounds, including three whose lives were at risk.
Large numbers of emergency personnel were sent to the area as investigators worked to establish the circumstances of the attack.
"This is one of the worst days for our community and a day I hoped I would never have to experience. I'm shocked," Julian Miethig, a visitor, said.
The festival is one of Berlin's largest annual public events and regularly attracts hundreds of thousands of participants. It combines a parade with calls for equality, inclusion and protection against discrimination.
