06:18

In her statement Merkel said she would visit the scene of the attack later today, together with Berlin’s mayor, Michael Müller, and the interior minster Thomas de Maizière.

A stream of politicians have been visiting the area.

Many commuters on their way to work have laid flowers and lit candles in the nearby Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church. The church was bombed in the second world war and was left in its damaged state as a memorial. It is known locally as “the jagged tooth”. People are queuing up to sign condolence books.