Inside Germany: Endless strikes, election debates and shock after Munich car attack

Local Germany

15-02-2025

Inside Germany is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in Germany that you might've missed. It's published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.
What happens next after brutal attack in Munich?
It's been a grim week in Germany. Just days before Germans go to the polls on February 23rd, another high-profile attack involving a migrant suspect has shaken the nation.
On Thursday morning, a car was driven into a crowd of people taking part in a strike demonstration in the centre of Munich. More than 30 people have been injured, some seriously. On Friday it emerged that a two-year-old girl was in a critical condition.
The driver, a 24-year-old man from Afghanistan, was arrested at the scene. However, conflicting information on the suspect's residence status and background has made it challenging to report accurately on the incident, and underlines the tense situation in Germany regarding migration.
The suspect had entered Germany as an asylum seeker in 2016. His asylum request was rejected by German authorities but he found work and was able to remain legally in the country, according to officials.
The reasons behind the attack were still being probed at the time of writing. But authorities on Friday said the suspect may have had Islamist extremist motives.
Members of the emergency services work at the scene where a car drove into a crowd in the southern German city of Munich on February 13rd, 2025 leaving several people injured. Photo: Michaela Stache / AFP
Initial assessments of evidence seized from electronic devices belonging to the suspect showed a "certain Islamist orientation", police spokesman Guido Limmer told reporters. After the incident, the suspect uttered the words "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest) to police officers and also prayed after his arrest, prosecutors said.
Bavaria's interior minister Joachim Herrmann, of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), was keen to point out on Friday that earlier statements he'd made over the suspect's history of shoplifting and other petty crimes were false.
Hermann said that up until the attack on Thursday "there was no reason to doubt that he (the suspect) had integrated himself into our lives in a reasonably orderly fashion".
The misinformation was likely due to tight deadlines on finding the details, police said.
Even though details remain patchy on the exact background and motive in this tragic incident, it's left the country feeling uneasy.
A bitter debate over immigration and public safety has already been raging in Germany in recent weeks following attacks, such as the devastating stabbing in a park in Aschaffenburg in January. Police arrested a 28-year-old rejected asylum seeker from Afghanistan in connection with this attack.
Meanwhile, following the Munich car ramming, many politicians have vowed to take action such as with more deportations to Afghanistan.
It comes after a motion from the conservatives calling to close borders and end illegal immigration passed in the Bundestag at the end of last month - controversially with the support of the far-right AfD.
An op-ed for Bavarian broadcaster BR24 published Friday said a stronger migration policy was needed. Politics expert Achim Wendler wrote: "There are still unanswered questions about this offence. What is certain, however, is that it was another rejected asylum seeker who allegedly committed a terrible crime. This shows that acts of violence committed by migrants are a political problem that need to be solved politically."
There's no doubt that immigration issues will continue to be at the top of the agenda for politicians - and many voters in Germany - as we get into the final stretch of the election campaign.
Public sector strikes hit life in Germany
Some of our most-read stories this week have been on the strikes affecting public services across German regions.
many commuters stranded in Berlin. And on Wednesday, people travelling on local transport in Frankfurt faced similar problems due to a day of strike action.
A man stands in the U-Bahn platform at Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, which is not served because of the warning strike. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Andreas Arnold
Meanwhile, various other public services, such as garbage collection, hospital care and daycare centres for children have been affected up and down the country, including Hamburg.
Trade union Verdi has said it may escalate the strikes and call for coordinated nationwide action if employers do not step up and submit a reasonable offer.
The union wants an eight percent pay rise for the approximately 2.5 million employees in the public sector, as well as additional vacation days.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) has said however that the unions' demands are "very high" and that budgets "remain tight".
Following a mostly uneventful debate on Sunday featuring the CDU's Friedrich Merz and the SPD's Olaf Scholz, there's another one on the way.
But this time it's Germany's first four-way televised election clash - nicknamed 'Das Quadrell'.
Along with Merz and Scholz, Green chancellor candidate Robert Habeck and Alternative for Germany's (AfD) hopeful Alice Weidel will join in the action.
Immigration will no doubt be the top theme of this debate after the events of this week. But they will hopefully also touch on other voters' issues such as inflation, jobs, housing and social issues.
It is estimated that around 13.6 million German voters (23 percent) have still not made up their minds one week before the election. Can these candidates persuade them?
The debate will be shown on Sunday on RTL at 8.15pm.