Suspect, German of Lebanese descent, had recently been convicted of preparing violent act, was suspected of trying to join ISIS, but was out of jail; far right calls for crackdown The post Merz vows response to Berlin Pride attack amid outcry over suspect being let near event appeared first on The Times of Israel. Officials said Abdul Ballout, a 21-year-old German-born citizen with Lebanese roots, plowed a vehicle into celebrants at one of Europe's largest Pride events. BERLIN (AP) — Berliners mourned Monday after the deadly attack near the city’s Pride festival as questions mounted over how the suspect was able to move freely following a conviction linked to his ties to the Islamic State group.
The 21-year-old Abdul Ballout, a German citizen, was killed following a search that lasted nearly 24 hours after Saturday night’s attack in downtown Berlin. He was suspected of driving a van into a crowd near the Pride festival before apparently cutting others with a machete in what authorities believe was an extremist terror attack. Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner said she was a Polish citizen who was in Berlin with her daughter.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Monday wanted to know how the attack could have been prevented. Prosecutors said Ballout previously sought to join IS. “We must do everything to protect people in Germany as best possible from such criminals, from dangerous people who for whatever reason can’t be taken into custody,” Merz said.
Here’s what we know: Officials seek answers about suspect’s sentencing Ballout, who was born in Germany and has Lebanese roots, traveled to Lebanon in 2025 with the goal of going to Syria to join the Islamic State group, Berlin prosecutors said. He made contact with several people who were presumed members — or at least he believed them to be, prosecutors said. He was arrested in Lebanon and sentenced by a military court to three months’ imprisonment for offenses including incitement to religious and sectarian conflict.
He returned to Germany after completing his sentence, where he was arrested at the Berlin airport. In May, a juvenile court in Berlin convicted Ballout of preparing a serious act of violence endangering the state, as well as publishing Islamic State propaganda on his Instagram account and other charges, prosecutors said. He was sentenced to one year and 10 months in youth custody, which Berlin prosecutors appealed.
Offenders who are 18 to 21 can be prosecuted in Germany’s juvenile system. Officials have said Ballout was given a suspended sentence. The Berlin courts, however, said his sentence had not been suspended but they had been determining whether it should be.
Summary from source