A car drove into a crowd in the southern German city of Stuttgart, on Friday, May 2, injuring several people, emergency services said. Stuttgart police said on their X account that "a car has driven into a group of people" in the central Olgaeck area while the fire service said on its account that there were "several hurt, including some seriously injured." Police soon added that there were "no indications of an attack" after a car drove into a crowd in the city centre, injuring several. "Based on our current investigations (...) our colleagues at the scene believe this was a tragic accident," the police force said in a statement on its X account. Police have warned people to avoid Stuttgart's city center, and said that there was severe disruption to traffic.
German media, such as Der Spiegel and Stuttgarter Zeitung, reported that the driver of the car had been arrested, without giving further details.
A police spokeswoman had earlier told the newspaper Stuttgarter Nachrichten that the incident occurred at around 5:50 pm and that at least three people were injured. She said police were investigating whether the incident was an accident or deliberate.
German security services have been on high alert following several deadly car-ramming attacks in recent months, including in the eastern city of Magdeburg and in the southern city of Munich.