German officials call for tighter extremism laws after Berlin Pride attack

Tributes were laid at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin after Saturday’s attack on one of Europe’s biggest Pride parades. Photograph: Filip Singer/EPA View image in fullscreen Tributes were laid at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin after Saturday’s attack on one of Europe’s biggest Pride parades. Photograph: Filip Singer/EPA German officials call for tighter extremism laws after Berlin Pride attack Alternative für Deutschland, topping polls ahead of state elections, accuses government of failing to tackle Islamist radicalism Europe live – latest updates German officials have called for a tightening of laws for known extremists after a deadly attack in Berlin on one of Europe’s biggest Pride parades , as the far right seeks to mobilise outraged voters before three key state elections. The anti-migration, anti-Islam Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), the top party in national opinion polls, accused the government of failing to tackle Islamist radicalism on German soil, while the conservative chancellor, Friedrich Merz, pledged to act with “prudence but also determination” to address security gaps. Abdul Ballout, a 21-year-old German national with Lebanese roots who was well known to police, is believed to have rammed a van into a crowd in the Tiergarten park late on Saturday, next to the finale of annual LGBTQ+ celebrations that drew hundreds of thousands of people. After the vehicle, which had been rented in Ballout’s name, crashed into a tree, he allegedly attacked people with a large knife. A 65-year-old Polish woman died and 29 others were injured. Following an hours-long manhunt, police said they shot Ballout dead in a garden allotment in the Spandau district on Sunday after he ran at them with a “bladed weapon” when they attempted to arrest him. View image in fullscreen German chancellor Friedrich Merz said his government would act with ‘prudence but also determination’ to address security gaps. Photograph: Clemens Bilan/EPA Merz said on Monday the victims had been rallying for “openness, diversity and freedom”, and were assaulted by “an Islamist who sought to attack those values”. As thousands gathered for a sombre ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin to mourn the victims, it emerged police had been aware of the risk posed by Ballout as an avowed Islamic extremist with previous arrests for bodily harm, extortion and robbery. Security authorities said Ballout was a supporter of Islamic State and last year attempted to join the group in Syria. He was arrested in Lebanon and repatriated, and in May was convicted in Germany of “preparing a serious act of subversive violence”. Berlin-born Ballout, who lived with his divorced mother and two sisters in the capital, was sentenced as a juvenile to a year and 10 months in prison. But the Berlin court suspended the sentence and he was allowed to walk free, albeit under sporadic police observation. Berlin’s top justice official, Felor Badenberg, on Monday acknowledged public ange