German police are investigating a probable terrorist attack after a man ploughed a lorry into a Christmas market in the heart of Berlin, killing 12 people and injuring 48. <br/><br/>The driver, a Pakistani asylum seeker who entered Germany last year, is being questioned.<br/><br/>German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, it would be particularly sickening if he were proven to be a refugee. <br/><br/>He was reportedly known to police for minor crimes, but not terror links. German media say police have searched a refugee shelter at a defunct Berlin airport where the suspect was believed to be staying.<br/><br/>Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said the man was probably from Pakistan and that his application for asylum had not yet been processed. The suspect denies involvement. <br/><br/>Mrs Merkel said in a short statement that those behind the attack would be punished as harshly as the law allows.

German police are investigating a probable terrorist attack after a man ploughed a lorry into a Christmas market in the heart of Berlin, killing 12 people and injuring 48. <br/><br/>The driver, a Pakistani asylum seeker who entered Germany last year, is being questioned.<br/><br/>German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, it would be particularly sickening if he were proven to be a refugee. <br/><br/>He was reportedly known to police for minor crimes, but not terror links. German media say police have searched a refugee shelter at a defunct Berlin airport where the suspect was believed to be staying.<br/><br/>Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said the man was probably from Pakistan and that his application for asylum had not yet been processed. The suspect denies involvement. <br/><br/>Mrs Merkel said in a short statement today those behind the attack would be punished as harshly as the law allows.