An Arab ex-Muslim linked to the AfD? Or is it different? The case of the murderer from Magdeburg gets tangled up

“The only thing that can be confirmed is that the attacker was an Islamophobe,” said German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser after the attack.

Investigators said at a press conference on Saturday that no conclusions can be drawn, as the police investigation has not been completed, but they are working with the version that the attacker’s motive could have been dissatisfaction with the way Germany treats migrants.

However, theories are circulating on social networks that everything could be different. In many posts on the X social network, where Tálib A. has over 48 thousand followers, he repeatedly verbally attacked former Muslims, although he himself also presented himself as an ex-Muslim.

“Saudi militant opposition – Germany persecutes Saudi female refugees to destroy their lives – Germany wants to Islamize Europe,” reads the medallion that Talib A. wrote about himself on the X network.

According to activist Maral Salmassiová, the attacker’s public hateful practices against Muslims could be in accordance with the Shiite practice of takiyah, an Islamic doctrine that justifies lying, fraud and denial of faith to promote Islamic goals. According to her, his alleged fight against Islam was just a cover, and in fact he is still a Muslim.

“Why would an atheist threaten ex-Muslims? After all, it doesn’t make any sense,” thinks the German-Saudi activist Salmassiová. “In reality, he is a radical Shia Muslim, as evidenced by his name and the numerous tweets and chat leaks circulating on X Network’s Arabic platforms,” ​​he adds.

It is known about Tálib A. that he comes from the city of Hofúf in the east of the country and that he previously subscribed to the Shiite branch of Islam, which is also indicated by one of his names Muhsín, traditionally Shiite, before he completely renounced the Muslim faith. The majority of the population of Saudi Arabia professes Sunni Islam.

Saudi Arabia warned the German authorities about the attacker, Reuters reported with reference to its sources. According to the DPA agency, Riyadh first demanded his extradition in the past, but the German authorities did not respond.

It is said that an unknown Saudi woman tried to warn the authorities directly about the imminent attack. “It is disturbing that his plans for the mass killing of Germans were brought to the attention of the German authorities by a Saudi woman. Unfortunately, the police ignored her warning,” points out Salmassiová, referring to screenshots in which an unknown Saudi woman was supposed to warn the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.

However, the authenticity of screenshots cannot be independently verified and it is very easy to manipulate them.

A user who goes by the name Bratr Rašíd also logged on to the X network. He presents himself as a former Muslim who converted to Christianity, and at the same time as an “expert on terrorism” and a “fighter for freedom of speech, human rights and religious freedom”.

In his post, he wrote that he closely follows the fate of people who turned away from Islam, connects with them on the Internet and interviews them. Twice – in 2018 and 2020 – he allegedly approached the attacker from Magdeburg to share his story on camera, but he allegedly refused in both cases.

In 2019, he was interviewed by the British BBC, in which he talked about his activities to help refugees reach Germany.

There are many question marks over Friday’s attacker, but the fact remains that he murdered at Christmas markets, and not, for example, at an Islamist demonstration. However, the conclusion will be brought only by the police investigation, which is still ongoing.

The perpetrator, who drove into a crowd of people at the Christmas markets in Magdeburg on Friday, was arrested immediately after the attack. He is now in custody and faces charges of murdering five people and attempting to murder another 200 people who were injured. The youngest victim is a nine-year-old child.

In the video, which shows him lying on the ground next to the wrecked BMW immediately after the attack, he can be heard shouting “Allahu akbar”, but it is not clear whether it is him or someone else.