Germany hunts for attacker after Daesh claims truck assault

German police on Wednesday stepped up their hunt for the driver of a truck that ploughed through a Berlin Christmas market, in a deadly assault claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group.

The sole suspect -- a 23-year-old Pakistani asylum seeker -- was released late Tuesday for lack of evidence, prompting fears of a killer on the loose and further rattling nerves in a shocked country.

"We can't rule out that the perpetrator is on the run," Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere told public broadcaster ZDF.

Twelve people were killed when the Polish-registered articulated truck, laden with steel beams, slammed into the crowded holiday market on Monday, smashing wooden stalls and crushing victims.

Twenty-four remained in hospital, 14 of whom were seriously injured, according to de Maiziere.

The scenes instantly revived nightmarish memories of the July 14 truck assault in the French Riviera city of Nice, where 86 people were killed by a Tunisian Islamist.

The IS-linked Amaq news agency said "a soldier of the Islamic State" carried out the Berlin carnage "in response to appeals to target citizens of coalition countries".

There was no evidence to back the claim, nor was the perpetrator identified.

Germany is part of a US-led coalition fighting IS in Iraq and Syria.

De Maiziere said several lines of inquiry were being pursued, but "we should let the security services do their job."

"No-one will rest until the perpetrator or perpetrators have been caught," he told ARD public television.

The attack comes at a sensitive time for Chancellor Angela Merkel who is running for a fourth term in 2017 but has faced strong criticism over her decision last year to open the country's borders to refugees.

- 'New suspect very soon' -

In a blow to investigators, federal prosecutors announced they had to release the only suspect in custody after finding no forensic evidence to link him to Germany's deadliest attack in recent years.

The Pakistani man was arrested late Monday after he was reportedly seen jumping out of the truck and fleeing the scene.

But officials had expressed growing doubts over whether they had the right suspect in custody, and he denied the charges under repeated questioning.

"We may have a dangerous criminal in the area," Berlin's police chief Klaus Kandt said, adding that security would be boosted while urging "heightened vigilance".

Following the suspect's release, Kandt told ARD television "one or more" perpetrators were believed to be on the run and possibly armed.

Police said they were chasing up more than 500 tips from the public and examining DNA traces found in the cab of the truck.

Maiziere.

 © AFP
Truck crashes into crowd at Christmas market in Berlin 
© AFP Simon MALFATTO, Paz PIZARRO
The scenes instantly revived nightmarish memories of the July 14 truck assault in the French Riviera city of Nice, where 86 people were killed by a Tunisian Islamist.

The IS-linked Amaq news agency said "a soldier of the Islamic State" carried out the Berlin carnage "in response to appeals to target citizens of coalition countries".

There was no evidence to back the claim, nor was the perpetrator identified.

Germany is part of a US-led coalition fighting IS in Iraq and Syria.

 © AFP
The attack comes at a sensitive time for Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) who is running for a fourth term, but faces criticism for opening the country to refugees 
© AFP Tobias SCHWARZ
De Maiziere said several lines of inquiry were being pursued, but "we should let the security services do their job."

"No-one will rest until the perpetrator or perpetrators have been caught," he told ARD public television.

The attack comes at a sensitive time for Chancellor Angela Merkel who is running for a fourth term in 2017 but has faced strong criticism over her decision last year to open the country's borders to refugees.

- 'New suspect very soon' -

In a blow to investigators, federal prosecutors announced they had to release the only suspect in custody after finding no forensic evidence to link him to Germany's deadliest attack in recent years.

 © AFP
Berlin's landmark Brandenburg Gate was lit in the national colours in honour of the victims 
© AFP CLEMENS BILAN
The Pakistani man was arrested late Monday after he was reportedly seen jumping out of the truck and fleeing the scene.

But officials had expressed growing doubts over whether they had the right suspect in custody, and he denied the charges under repeated questioning.

"We may have a dangerous criminal in the area," Berlin's police chief Klaus Kandt said, adding that security would be boosted while urging "heightened vigilance".

Following the suspect's release, Kandt told ARD television "one or more" perpetrators were believed to be on the run and possibly armed.

Police said they were chasing up more than 500 tips from the public and examining DNA traces found in the cab of the truck.

 © AFP
Dortmund and Augsburg players stand for a minute of silence for the victims of the Berlin attack prior to their German Bundesliga match 
© AFP PATRIK STOLLARZ
"I am fairly confident that we will have a new suspect tomorrow or very soon," the head of the BDK police union, Andre Schulz, told ZDF late Tuesday.

Images from the aftermath of the rampage showed the mangled truck with its windscreen smashed, a trail of destruction in its wake, while survivors recounted harrowing stories of near misses and bloody carnage.

- Germany in mourning -

A Polish man, killed with a gunshot, was found on the truck's passenger seat, said de Maiziere. He was believed to be the original driver of the Polish-registered vehicle.

The 37-year-old Pole named Lukasz worked for his cousin Ariel Zurawski's transport company in northern Poland. 

Zurawski described him as a "good guy" and said his body showed signs of a struggle with the assailant or assailants.

"One person would not have been able to overpower him," Zurawski said of the relative he had grown up with, a heavyset man who weighed in at 120 kilos (265 pounds) and stood 183 centimetres (six feet) tall. 

"We could see injuries. His face was bloodied and swollen," he told private news channel TVN 24, referring to a photo he received from Polish police.

An autopsy indicated that the driver was still alive at the time of the attack, the daily Bild reported.

Merkel visited the scene of the carnage for a minute's silence on Tuesday and then joined a memorial service in the adjacent Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church.

Mourners placed flowers and candles at the site while German flags flew at half-mast.

Berlin's landmark Brandenburg Gate was lit in the national colours in honour of the victims, and foreign leaders, led by US President Barack Obama, sent their condolences.

Europe has been on high alert for most of 2016, with bloody jihadist attacks striking Paris since last year and Brussels.

In July, 15 people were injured in two attacks in the southern German state of Bavaria committed by asylum seekers and claimed by the Islamic State group. 

The arrival of 890,000 refugees last year has polarised Germany, with critics calling the influx a serious security threat.

Opponents were quick to seize on the carnage as proof that Merkel's liberal asylum policy had endangered the country.

Marcus Pretzell of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party labelled the Christmas market victims "Merkel's dead".

Source: AFP