Berlin CSD Attack: Only Ballout's DNA Found in Getaway Car; He Showed Aggression in First Grade

Author Hasnain Kazim reports on reactions in the Arab world to the CSD attack. Much joy is observed on social media: "It is being celebrated, it is being smirked at, and people think: Good that this happened."

DNA Evidence in Getaway Vehicle

After the attack on the sidelines of the Berlin CSD, investigators identified DNA traces of the perpetrator in the getaway car. A spokesperson for the Federal Public Prosecutor General confirmed that the DNA belonged to Abdul Ballout. No other DNA traces were discovered in the vehicle, making it clear that Ballout most likely drove the car. RBB first reported this.

Updated Casualty Figures

On Wednesday, the Senate provided more precise information about the people injured in the attack. According to Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD):

• 1 fatality
• 7 people seriously injured, subsequently treated as inpatients in a hospital
• 24 slightly injured people, of whom:
• 12 were treated as outpatients in a hospital and then discharged
• 12 were not treated in a hospital

Confession Video Found

According to the Federal Public Prosecutor General's office on Tuesday, a confession video was found on Abdul Ballout's mobile phone. In the video, a masked person—presumably Abdul Ballout himself—pledges allegiance to the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS).

School Years: History of Aggressive Behavior

According to a media report from the Berliner Morgenpost, Ballout is said to have stood out for aggressive behavior as early as elementary school. Key details include:

• Notes about his behavior were made as early as the first grade
• His parents did not cooperate with teachers
• He changed elementary school twice
• He later attended a secondary school in a support center
• He had difficulties in emotional and social areas and was entitled to special educational support
• He subsequently developed into a school refuser and left school without a diploma

Education Senator Initiates Debate

The Senate Department for Education confirmed the Morgenpost report regarding Ballout's school years. "Accordingly, the person in question was educated in the Berlin school system, support and special educational needs were identified early on, and he left school without a school diploma," the department stated.

Education Senator Katharina Günther-Wünsch commented: "The case shows that problem situations were apparently recognized early on. At the same time, it makes clear that state assistance can reach its limits when necessary cooperation from the family environment is lacking. We must therefore talk openly about the point at which, in the event of a significant endangerment of a child's welfare, the protection of the child must be weighted more heavily than parental rights."

Radicalization and Prior Criminal Record

According to information from the Berlin Senate, Ballout belonged at times to a Salafist group that was out proselytizing and recruiting followers. Iris Spranger stated this in the Interior Committee of the House of Representatives. Since 2021, an increasing process of radicalization had been observed in him.

Key timeline:

• Since November 2021: Abdul Ballout had been known to the Berlin Office for the Protection of the Constitution
• Since 2021: He moved in the Salafist scene
• Since 2019: He came to police attention for offenses including bodily harm, fraud, robbery, and insults

Spranger noted that in Berlin, 1,250 people belong to the Salafist scene, of whom 350 are violence-oriented. According to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, there are a total of 2,590 Islamists in Berlin.

nw with dpa