A car plowed into a crowded Christmas market in Magdeburg, the capital of the central German state of Saxony-Anhalt, killing at least two people and injuring as many as 68 others.

On Friday night, officials called the incident an intentional attack and announced the driver had been detained.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was one of many to express condolences immediately after the incident.

“My heart goes out to the victims and their families,” Scholz said. wrote on social media platform X.

“We stand with them and with the people of Magdeburg. I would like to thank the rescue workers who are doing their job during these anxious times.”

Saxony-Anhalt Interior Minister Tamara Zieschang identified the suspect as a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia who arrived in Germany in 2006.

Another state official, Reiner Haseloff, told local news media that one of the dead was a child and the other an adult. He added that he could not determine whether more people were killed in the suspected attack.

“This is just speculation right now. Every life lost in this attack is a terrible tragedy, too many lives,” Haseloff told reporters. “

He said officials currently believe the suspect in custody was the sole perpetrator of the crash.

“As it stands, he is a lone perpetrator, so as far as we know the city is no longer in danger,” Haseloff told reporters.

According to the city government website, 15 of the injured were in critical condition. Another 37 people were moderately injured and 16 were slightly injured.

Local media reported that the car rammed into the crowd around 7pm local time (18:00 GMT) and was spotted traveling at high speed.

Christmas markets are a tradition in German-speaking Europe that dates back to the Middle Ages. In Magdeburg, which has about 240,000 residents, the market is set up in the town square with stalls selling local food and drinks.

Al Jazeera correspondent Dominic Kane, who went to the scene of Friday’s suspected attack, said Christmas markets would be particularly crowded when car attacks occur.

“It’s the last Friday before Christmas. There’s a tradition all over Germany, and Christmas markets are where people go, especially on Friday nights,” Kane said.

“Then think about the physical geography of the market in question, where it was. It wasn’t far from the town, it wasn’t far from the Elbe River, it was actually in a very picturesque city. So people had a lot of reasons to come to the city center at that time. “

“This is a terrible tragedy. It is a disaster for the city of Magdeburg, the entire state and the entire German people,” Haseloff said. “It really is one of the worst things one can imagine, especially considering what a Christmas market is supposed to bring.”

Friday night’s suspected attack comes eight years after a similar car crash in the German capital Berlin on December 19, 2016.

In this case, the 24-year-old Tunisian suspect Anis Amri deliberately drive a truck Enter the Christmas market at Breitscheidplatz, the main public square. 12 people died and 56 were injured.

Raphael Bosson, a senior researcher at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, speculated that the two incidents may be related.

“Unfortunately, it is a very sad anniversary and I am sure that the perpetrators displayed this thing for this purpose, to evoke this memory,” Bosson told Al Jazeera shortly after the news broke.

He added that Friday’s suspected attack could have political repercussions in Germany, which is due to hold federal elections in 2025.

“We are entering an election period and the debate in Germany around these immigration issues is already very polarized,” Bosson explained. “I’m sure this will only add fuel to the fire, as sad as it is.”

In particular, security arrangements – both in markets and in countries as a whole – are likely to come under scrutiny.

“All Christmas markets and all these facilities should now be closed to traffic because no cars or trucks can enter them,” Bosson told Al Jazeera. “The authorities may need to give some explanations.”

Stay tuned for more details.