Berlin under threat: terrorism strikes again

Guten tag, I had been asked to offer my response to the latest terror attack in Berlin. It is particularly shocking since I had just spent some time working in Berlin this autumn, returning in late November. Berlin is a wonderful city that is so rich in history. I like Berlin very much - it is one of my favourite cities in Europe and whilst what happened is sickeningly similar to the terrorist attack in Nice last year, there's a relief as well that the death toll isn't as high as it was in Nice.

I am nervous about what kind of backlash we may see in Germany after an attack like this - this is hardly the first terrorist attack in Germany, there was a lone gunman in Munich who went on a shooting spree back in July this year. Germany has been the most welcoming country in all of Europe, in response to the current Syrian refugee crisis. Yet it is shocking that Germany is still the target of such attacks despite their welcoming stance on helping the refugees. It is hard to understand, but ISIS and their supporters see Germany as a target because they want to turn German public opinion against refugees - a swing to the far right (as we've seen in America recently during their presidential election this year) would fuel hatred against Muslims and that would play into ISIS' hands.

Would Merkel be able to maintain this very left-wing, pro-refugee stance after an incident like this, especially if it can be proven that the terrorist who did this came to Germany as a refugee? I doubt it - she would need to be at least seen to be taking a tough stance in response to the terrorist attack. What upsets me about this attack is once again, the victims were ordinary folks selected at random - these were just people who happened to be in the Christmas market at the time. I had visited some of these such German markets when I was in Berlin and have always enjoyed them for their atmosphere. At least in a war situation, you have soldiers fighting soldiers - but when a terrorist attacks innocent people including women and children; that's when I feel sick to my stomach. Security is going to be tightened over the next few days in Germany and any kind of new year's celebration will be either cancelled or scaled back.

Will we expect more such attacks in Europe in 2017? Unfortunately, that is probably going to be the case. But then again, I think we're being increasingly desensitized to such terror attacks. I remember going to Brussels just after the Brussels terrorist attacks earlier this year and sure it felt very tense and sad but within a few months, things just went back to normal. It was impossible to sustain that level of security, having checkpoints everywhere for an indefinite period of time and sure enough, there hasn't been another attack on Brussels since. By the same token, one would expect security to be really tight in Germany at least until January but eventually, things will go back to normal - just like other places which have unfortunately experienced such tragic terrorist attacks before as well.

So if you are going to visit Germany in the next few weeks, please go ahead and don't worry too much - try to enjoy your trip and allow extra time for the enhanced security checks in places like airports, train stations and bus stations. Pay attention to announcements, listen to the news and always obey instructions when encountering figures of authority. It is probably going to be very safe right now in Germany as terrorists only strike when they have the element of surprise on their side, when they can catch people off guard. Keep calm and stay safe everyone, let's send the people of Berlin and Germany our love at this time. If you have any questions about the situation in Berlin or about traveling to Germany in general, please feel free to leave a comment below. Many thanks for reading, vielen dank.