Heavily-armed police stand in a garden house colony in Spandau district where they reportedly confronted and shot dead Abdul B (Image: Getty)

Berlin police shot dead Abdul Ballout, the main suspect in a van-ramming attack during Berlin’s Christopher Street Day (CSD) Pride celebrations that killed one person and injured 29, after police said he charged officers with a bladed weapon.

Police said Ballout was located in Spandau at around 6 p.m. local time (1600 GMT/UTC) following a search lasting nearly 24 hours. “Around 6 p.m. (1600 GMT), the suspect involved in yesterday’s attack in Tiergarten was located at an allotment garden complex in Spandau,” Berlin police wrote on social media.

“According to initial findings, he ran towards officers while armed with a bladed weapon; police … subsequently opened fire. Despite immediate resuscitation efforts by the Berlin Fire Department, he died at the scene.”

Officials also said all indications pointed to an “Islamic terror attack”. A Berlin prosecutor’s office statement has been published as the investigation continues.

The attack happened on Saturday evening, shortly after 10 p.m., when a van drove into a crowd in the Tiergarten area during the closing event of CSD Pride celebrations near the Brandenburg Gate.

After the attack, hundreds of people gathered at the Brandenburg Gate to pay respects, holding a minute of silence and laying flowers, according to updates on the manhunt and political reaction.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier condemned the incident, saying: “This act is an attack on our open society, on our way of life and on our ability to live together,” adding he was “shaken and outraged.”

Justice minister Stefanie Hubig said Germany’s federal public prosecutor’s office will take over the investigation. “The Interior Minister has already announced that this is an Islamist attack. The Federal Public Prosecutor General will take over the investigation,” she said. “Naturally, we will pursue those responsible with the utmost severity and then bring them to trial.”

Ballout was a German citizen with Lebanese roots, police said. Judicial authorities said he had made multiple failed attempts to leave Germany and join the so-called Islamic State (IS) group, and that he returned to Germany in November 2025.

Vice chancellor Lars Klingbeil said: “Christopher Street Day stands for the right of every person to live freely,” adding: “We will defend that.”

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