For years I’ve watched the far-right party mobilise in my home town. I fear Friday’s terrible events will galvanise it further

On Saturday afternoon in Magdeburg a man stood outside Johanniskirche (St John’s church), contemplating a lake of candles, flowers and soft toys. Then he loudly voiced his disbelief. “And then they say he supported the AfD. As if. You just can’t believe the media any more.”

People had gathered here to mourn. The photo of a dead nine-year-old boy was being shown around. Used rescue blankets piled up at the roadside as police guarded the now empty market.

Thomas Vorreyer is a Berlin-based journalist with a focus on East German politics