television
Noise, screams: documentary about the attack on Breitscheidplatz
On 19 December 2016, Islamist killer Anis Amri drove a truck into a Berlin Christmas market and killed eleven people. 3sat allows survivors, relatives and investigators to speak.
He remembers the deafening sound, screams and loud roar of the truck crushing everything in its path – stalls, Christmas decorations and people. Elisabetta Ragno survived the Islamist attack on Berlin’s Christmas market on Breitscheidplatz, which killed 13 people. Ragno was one of the witnesses who described his experience on December 19 2016 in the documentary series “The Attack”.
The series can be seen in the 3sat media library from Thursday (13 November, from 6am) and will be broadcast on 3sat on 10 December (20:15).
Could the attack have been prevented?
In five chapters, not only survivors and relatives express their opinions, but also detectives, prosecutors, journalists and politicians involved in the case at the time. It’s about the history of the attack, about attacker Anis Amri, the pain and unanswered questions of relatives, about investigative errors and the question: Could the attack have been prevented?
Amri was a rejected asylum seeker from Tunisia and was already known to authorities as an Islamist threat before the attack. He has contacts in Salafi circles and is a supporter of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist organization.
To carry out the attack, Amri first shot a Polish truck driver and hijacked his vehicle. He then drove this truck through the Christmas market at the Berlin Memorial Church, killing eleven people. One of the survivors later died from complications from the attack.
After the attack, Amri managed to escape to Italy, where he was later shot during a police check.
Don’t you want to miss something more from the star?
Personal, competent and entertaining: Editor-in-Chief Gregor Peter Schmitz sends you the most important content from his free newsletter every Wednesday star-Editorial and classify what Germany is talking about. Click here to register.
Relative Astrid Passin described the moment she realized her father was one of the victims in the documentary: “It was a stab in the heart.” This documentary focuses on the survivors and their relatives. A doctor who happened to be at the location when the attack occurred and spontaneously provided first aid also gave his opinion. The truck drove past in front of him, less than two meters away.
Filmmaker Astrid Schult said it took seven to eight years to develop the series. He said he really wanted to tell this story, also out of responsibility towards his relatives and their fate.
dpa
