At least five people lost their lives, and over 200 were injured in a car-ramming incident at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, officials reported. A Saudi national has been arrested on suspicion of driving into the crowd.

The attack occurred on Friday evening as marketers gathered to celebrate the pre-Christmas season.

The incident has strengthened an ongoing debate over security and migration during Germany’s election campaign, where the far-right is gaining significant traction in polls.

“What a terrible act it is to injure and kill so many people there with such brutality,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in the central city, part of the former East Germany, where he laid a white rose at a church in honour of the victims.

“We have now learnt that over 200 people have been injured,” he added. “Almost 40 are so seriously injured that we must be very worried about them.”