MUSCAT/MAGDEBURG: The Sultanate of Oman has condemned the incident in the German city of Magdeburg, where a number of people were killed and dozens injured in a car-ramming attack. The Sultanate of Oman expresses its heartfelt condolences to the government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the families of the victims, and wishes a swift recovery to those injured.
In a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, Oman affirmed its strong stance against all forms of violence and terrorism, regardless of their motives or causes.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday condemned the "terrible, insane" car-ramming attack on a crowded Christmas market that killed five people and injured more than 200.
Police arrested a 50-year-old Saudi psychiatry doctor at the scene on Friday, next to the battered SUV that had ploughed through the festive crowd.
A sombre Scholz, dressed in black, visited the attack site on Saturday with national and regional politicians in the eastern city of Magdeburg, where they laid flowers outside the main church.
He pledged that Germany would respond "with the full force of the law" to the attack. But he also called for unity in the country that has been plunged into a heated debate on immigration and security ahead of elections in February.
The centre-left chancellor said it was important "that we stick together, that we link arms, that it is not hatred that determines our coexistence but the fact that we are a community that seeks a common future." He labelled the attack "terrible, insane" but said he was grateful for expressions of "solidarity" from many countries around the world. "It is good to hear that we as Germans are not alone in the face of this terrible catastrophe." - AFP/ONA
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