Authorities say deadly car ramming at Berlin Pride was an Islamist terrorist attack

+ Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Authorities say deadly car ramming at Berlin Pride was an Islamist terrorist attack German officials termed the deadly car ramming attack near the Berlin pride celebration that killed one and injured dozens an Islamist terrorist attack Europe Authorities say deadly car ramming at Berlin Pride was an Islamist terrorist attack July 27, 20264:42 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition By Esme Nicholson Authorities say deadly car ramming at Berlin Pride was an Islamist terrorist attack Listen &middot; 2:20 2:20 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5908499/nx-s1-9864109" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript German officials termed the deadly car ramming attack near the Berlin pride celebration that killed one and injured dozens an Islamist terrorist attack Sponsor Message Transcript A MARTÍNEZ, HOST: To Germany now, where a vehicle rammed into a crowd near Berlin's annual Pride parade over the weekend. One person died and at least 29 others were injured. On Sunday, police shot and killed the suspect, Abdul Ballout, after a manhunt lasting nearly a full day. Here's Esme Nicholson. ESME NICHOLSON, BYLINE: This is the moment Berlin Pride organizers urged hundreds of thousands of people marching and dancing towards the Brandenburg Gate to leave the parade calmly and go home. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED ORGANIZER: (Speaking German). (SOUNDBITE OF SIREN WAILING) NICHOLSON: They were following police instructions after a white van drove into a crowd close to the procession route. Prosecutors are treating the incident as an act of Islamist terrorism. Calling it abhorrent, Chancellor Friedrich Merz says terrorists have no place in German society. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) CHANCELLOR FRIEDRICH MERZ: (Through interpreter) We will not be intimidated. These acts have only one purpose, and that is to take away the most important thing we have - our openness and our freedom. NICHOLSON: Twenty-one-year-old Abdul Ballout fled the scene, brandishing what witnesses say was a machete. Police shot and killed him in a community garden on the outskirts of Berlin on Sunday evening. Prosecutors say that last year, Ballout, a German national with Lebanese heritage, attempted to join ISIS on a trip to Lebanon. He was arrested on his return to Berlin and convicted of preparing a serious act of violence, but handed down a suspended sentence, which prosecutors were appealing. Pride organizer Thomas Hoffmann says increasing hostility is the reason why a record 700,000 people showed up to Pride this year. THOMAS HOFFMANN: (Through interpreter) We've become complacent. For decades, things have been getting better regarding our rights, our safety and our visibility, but that's changing and we need to take a stand. NICHOLSON: But he says the threats are also coming thick and fast from the far right, with an increasing number of anti-Pride protests staged by neo-Nazis. Berlin mayor, Kai Wegner, says this was an attack on all Berliners. KAI WEGNER: (Through interpreter) We will not let anyone destroy our way of life. NICHOLSON: But for many taking part in Pride this weekend, life has been destroyed and the city has changed. For NPR News, I'm Esme Nicholson in Munich. (SOUNDBITE OF SEAM'S "ALOHA SPIRIT") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{310:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(80)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(769),o(155),o(176),o(93),o(447),o(254),o(128),o(130),o(754),o(175),o(755),o(255),o(78),o(773)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},782:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(310)}},[[782,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();