US condemns attack on Berlin Christmas market

Washington: The US has condemned "in the strongest terms" an attack on a Christmas market in the German capital of Berlin which killed at least nine persons.

"We have been in touch with German officials, and we stand ready to provide assistance as they recover from and investigate this horrific incident," said US National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price in a statement on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.

A truck ploughed into a crowd at a Christmas market in Berlin on Monday night, killing nine persons and injuring 50 others, Berlin Police said.

The truck drove over the sideway at Breitscheidplatz, a major public square near the location of the iconic Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, in the inner city of Berlin, the police tweeted.

The motive of the incident remains unknown. Police have begun investigations which point to a possible terrorist attack.

The background of the incident is still unclear, the police added.

"We mourn the dead and hope that many injured people can be helped," German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert tweeted on Monday night.