Psychiatrist of Saudi origin and anti-Islam activist: everything that is known about Taleb, the man arrested for the mass attack in Germany

After 7:00 p.m. in the afternoon, the alleged perpetrator, a 50-year-old man of Saudi originpounced with his car, a BMW, on the crowd that was between the booths. The vehicle traveled about 400 meters at high speed, unleashing panic among those present and taking dozens of people with it.

The authorities have not yet clarified the motives that could be hidden behind this incident, which they are investigating as a alleged terrorist attack. What they have done is identify the driver, an individual of Saudi origin who was arrestedas reported by the regional premier, Reiner Haseloff.

It is about Taleb Al Abdulmohsena 50-year-old doctor who, according to the German newspaper Bild, is originally from Saudi Arabia, although he has a permanent residence permit. The suspect, who settled in Germany in 2006 after fleeing his country of origin, works as specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy in a clinic in Bernburg, about 46 kilometers from Magdeburg, where the mass accident occurred.

The perpetrator of the attack is a refugee doctor who fled Saudi Arabia

Close sources have also told the newspaper Bild that Taleb was not known or prominent as an Islamist. In fact, they even describe it as anti-islam activistas he himself stated in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper in 2019: «I am the most aggressive critic of Islam in history. That’s why they threatened me: They wanted to kill me if I returned to Saudi Arabia. So I decided to apply for asylum in Germany. It would not have made sense to expose herself to the risk of having to return and then be murdered,” she told the aforementioned media.

The man was considered a prominent figure within the community of Saudi expats in Germany and, in recent years, he had devoted himself largely to criticizing the German government tolerance with radical Islam. In this same interview, the doctor also revealed that he had founded an Internet platform to help Saudi women apply for asylum in Germany.

Anti-Islam activist and critic of the German Government

He also left evidence of this activism against Islam in a profile on X (formerly Twitter) that is apparently directed by him. The alleged perpetrator of the mass attack included extremist messages in his description such as “Germany is hunting Saudi asylum seekers inside and outside Germany to destroy their lives” and “Germany wants to Islamize Europe”.

According to various media, Taleb Al Abdulmohsen’s online activity had intensified days before this attack occurred in the German town. Taleb dedicated many messages on his social networks to criticizing the German government, committing “a series of deliberate crimes against Saudi refugees». Furthermore, he went so far as to state that They were trying to silence him for his controversial opinions.

Now, the German authorities are now investigating these messages from the alleged driver of the car and also the his sympathy with the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD), according to Der Spiegel magazine. A Saudi source told Reuters that Saudi Arabia had warned German authorities about the attacker after he posted extremist views on his personal X (formerly Twitter) account that threatened peace and security.