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Germany Christmas market attacker, a Saudi psychiatrist, sentenced to life

A German court on Friday jailed for life a Saudi psychiatrist who killed six people and wounded more than 300 when he drove a rented…

By Samantha Johnson / June 26, 2026

A German court on Friday jailed for life a Saudi psychiatrist who killed six people and wounded more than 300 when he drove a rented SUV through a crowded Christmas market in 2024.

Taleb Jawad al-Abdulmohsen, 51 – an anti-Islam activist and adherent to right-wing conspiracy theories – listened to the verdict from inside a bulletproof glass box, his hands shackled.

He was convicted of six counts of murder and 338 counts of attempted murder by the court in the eastern city of Magdeburg.

Judges also found there was an “especially severe culpability” – a ruling usually reserved for the most vile, cruel or morally reprehensible crimes.

German prisoners serving life sentences can apply for parole after 15 years, but this designation makes release much less likely.

Flowers and candles placed in tribute to the hundreds of victims of a car-ramming attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, eastern Germany, in December 2024. Six people died. Photo: AFP
Flowers and candles placed in tribute to the hundreds of victims of a car-ramming attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, eastern Germany, in December 2024. Six people died. Photo: AFP

During the months-long trial, Abdulmohsen admitted to driving the vehicle – a BMW X3 compact SUV with over 340 horsepower – through the crowd on December 20, 2024, but denied deliberately running people over.

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