A man has gone on trial in Germany charged with driving his car into a crowd of people in the city of Munich last year, killing two people.
The 25-year-old man, named only as Farhad N, in line with German privacy laws, is an Afghan national.
Prosecutors say that on the morning of 13 February 2025, he deliberately drove his BMW Mini into a trade union demonstration in the centre of Munich. About 1,400 people were taking part in the street rally.
A 37-year-old woman called Amel and her two-year-old daughter Hafsa died in hospital of their injuries shortly afterwards.
They were the hit by the car first and thrown several metres by the force of the impact. Hafsa was still in her buggy.
Among the 44 others who were hurt, a number suffered critical injuries.
Those taking part in the union rally included city workers such as hospital and daycare staff calling for better wages. Amel herself had been working as an engineer and had come to Germany from Algeria at the age of four.
Farhad N went on trial on Friday only a few hundred metres from the scene of the attack.
Federal prosecutors say they believe he “committed the crime out of excessive religious motivation.
“He believed he was obliged to attack and kill randomly selected people in Germany in response to the suffering of Muslims in Islamic countries,” they say.
According to investigators, the man shouted “Allahu Akbar” and prayed after committing the act.
He is also accused of watching extremist preachers online, however officials do not believe he was part of any jihadist movement such as Islamic State.
At the start of the trial the defendant hid his face behind a red folder and raised his right index finger – a common gesture among Muslims worldwide, symbolising belief in one God.
His lawyer said his client would not comment on either the attack or his personal circumstances.
Officials say he arrived in Germany in 2016 as a teenager.
Germany took in more than a million asylum seekers in 2015-2016 at the height of Europe’s migrant crisis – an influx that has proved deeply divisive and fuelled the rise of the far-right AfD.
Farhad N came alone, without his family and, although his asylum request was rejected, he was not deported and had been given temporary residency in Munich.
German authorities said he was legally resident in Germany, had a work permit and had jobs working as a shop security guard and for security companies.
Farhad N had no previous convictions. He was active on Instagram, where he posted about bodybuilding and religious themes.
He was arrested on the day of the Munich attack. The trial is expected to continue until June.
