German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Wednesday urged the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) not to exploit an attack on a Christmas market in the city of Magdeburg last week.

Five people were killed and over 200 were injured when a car was driven through crowds at the Christmas market in the city in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.

What did Faeser say?

"To the AfD, I can only say: Any attempt to exploit such a terrible act and to abuse the suffering of the victims is despicable," Faeser said in comments to the Funke Media Group, a major publisher of German newspapers and magazines. 

"It only shows the character of those who do such things," she said.

The AfD held a rally in Magdeburg on Monday. Police said it was attended by some 3,500 people.

Germany is set to hold snap elections in late February. The AfD has frequently landed second place in polling ahead of the vote, behind the conservative CDU/CSU alliance. 

Referring to the Friday attack, Faeser said, "We are doing everything to clarify this act. We mourn the dead and our thoughts are with their families."

What do we know about the suspected perpetrator?

The 50-year-old suspected perpetrator, identified as Taleb A.*, is in pre-trial detention.

Police continued to investigate the man's possible motives, who is originally from Saudi Arabia and has been living in Germany since 2006.

The suspect was a prolific user of the platform X, where he published many posts critical of Islam and Saudi Arabia and had expressed support for the AfD.

Germany's DPA news agency reported that Saudi authorities had requested the suspect's extradition last year.

"Right now, we also have to support the first responders and emergency personnel, who have experienced terrible things and have gone above and beyond," Faeser said.

*Editor's note: DW follows the German press code, which stresses the importance of protecting the privacy of suspected criminals or victims and urges us to refrain from revealing the full names of alleged criminals.

sdi/wd (AFP, dpa)