On Monday evening a truck rammed into a crowd at a Christmas market in Berlin, killing at least 12 and injuring 48. The attack bears a striking resemblance to the terrorist act that took place in the French city of Nice this July killing 86 people, including children.
A 23-year-old Pakistani man, arrested following the Christmas market attack was released Tuesday due to lack of evidence.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has come under heavy criticism from the country's right-wing party over her open-door immigration policy following the Berlin terror strike.
AfD Federal Chairwoman Frauke Petry warned that "Germany is no longer safe," while her party colleague AfD North-Rhine Westphalia State Chairman Marcus Pretzell tweeted: "These are Merkel's dead," referring to the victims of the attack.
"When will the German state of law strike back? When will this cursed hypocrisy finally stop? These are Merkel's dead!" Pretzell wrote on his Twitter.
Wann schlägt der deutsche Rechtsstaat zurück? Wann hört diese verfluchte Heuchelei endlich auf? Es sind Merkels Tote!#Nizza#Berlin
— Marcus Pretzell (@MarcusPretzell) 19 декабря 2016 г.
Speaking to Sputnik Pazderski emphasized that the Federal Government should take every effort to ensure the Germans' safety, so that they could again celebrate Christmas.
The German politician expressed hope that the country's political parties will be brought together to discuss the situation and work out a plan to make the country more secure.
"At the moment, we are not as well prepared as we could and should have been," Pazderski, a retired Colonel, underscored.
He turned the spotlight on the German government's errors and omissions, adding that AfD has repeatedly called Berlin's attention to security matters.
It is hardly surprising that the terror attack took place in Berlin, since the German capital is the city with the highest concentration of Islamists, according to Pazderski.
The retired Colonel emphasized that the uncontrolled influx of immigrants remains part of the problem.
"At the moment we do not know, who is in our country, what these people's background is and what their intentions are. It is necessary to include all migrants and refugees into police databases. We must know, who is in our country," Pazderski highlighted.
Furthermore, it is necessary to improve security at the Christmas markets, the German politician believes.
"This is the attack on our culture and our lifestyle; in no way should it force us to submit to terrorists, stay at home being gripped by fear, and do nothing," he said, adding that that is exactly what terrorists want.
According to Radek, it would have been absolutely wrong to close all Christmas markets in Germany because of security concerns.
"It would mean surrender to criminals, we shouldn't do it under any circumstances," Radek told Sputnik Deutschland.
However, the police officer admitted that it will be difficult to protect thousands of Christmas fairs around Germany from terror attacks. Unfortunately, such gatherings remain an easy target for terrorists, he noted.
"We cannot provide one hundred percent security against terrorism, it is impossible, but we must remain alert to ensure our civil society's one hundred percent safety," he pointed out.
Radek told Sputnik that nevertheless it is necessary to increase the number of police officers on the streets. He added that the possibility of introducing security measures at Christmas fairs similar to those implemented in airports is currently being discussed.
At the same time, additional security measures should be designed not to provoke psychological discomfort and a sense of insecurity among the Germans, Radek warned.
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