Truck ran into Christmas market and killed 12 in Berlin

A 'terror attack' is feared in Berlin after a lorry ran through a crowded Christmas market. 

At least 12 people were killed and up to 50 were injured when the huge truck veered off the road and smashed into wooden booths in the centre of the city.

Police arrested a man who they suspect may be the driver and said a male passenger died at the scene. Eyewitnesses described terrifying scenes as the truck mowed down pedestrians and demolished wooden stands.

The Police are interrogating a suspect – thought to be the driver – who was arrested 2km from the scene and are working on the assumption the black Scania articulated truck was deliberately driven into the busy market in Breitscheidplatz. The truck had a run up of about 80 metres before crashing into market stalls and shoppers outside Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church, at about 8 pm.

A man found in the truck was ruled out by police as the driver at the time of the attack. He died as a result of the crash and was later identified as a Polish citizen. The Polish delivery company that owned the vehicle said it lost touch with the driver at 4 pm local time after it left the country for Berlin.

Owner Ariel Zurawki said he feared the vehicle, driven by his cousin, might have been hijacked. He told the Polish news outlet TVN24: “They must have done something to my driver.”