Nearly two weeks after the Islamist attack on Berlin’s CSD, the police have ended their on-site support. The mobile station at the attack site in the Tiergarten was shut down on Friday at 6 p.m., a police spokesperson said in response to inquiries. After that, officers would continue to patrol the park.
In the days since, people seeking support or anyone who wanted to talk could still approach police officers on-site at any time. Since July 27, about 280 people had used this option, authorities said.
The police stood in close proximity to the scene near the Brandenburg Gate, where after the attack people left flowers, wreaths, expressions of mourning and other messages at several locations.
New Memorial Site
“There were many mourners as well as witnesses who came back to the scene for another visit. And there were people who said: ‘I was here exactly one hour earlier.’ That, too, effects them,” Uta Bolze of the Berlin Emergency Pastoral Care/Crisis Intervention Team told the Tagesspiegel.
Since Thursday there is a new memorial site there. In place of the tree that had to be felled after the vehicle-ramming attack in the Tiergarten, a new tree has been planted. Next to it, the Mitte district office installed a rainbow-colored bench (TheColu.mn reported).
One Woman Killed, Many Injured
During the July 25 terrorist attack, the Islamist-motivated assailant drove a van into a crowd in the Tiergarten and then crashed the vehicle into a tree. Afterwards the 21-year-old Islamist — reportedly with a machete — attacked additional people before fleeing. A woman was killed and 31 people injured, some severely.
The attacker was shot dead by police in Berlin the day after the attack as officers tried to arrest him. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe has taken over the investigations into the attack’s background.
Around 460 Tips
A tip portal run by the Berlin police, where potential witnesses could submit tips in the form of self-recorded photos or videos related to the incident, was closed on Wednesday. According to a police spokesperson, about 460 tips were submitted. She did not provide further details.
