Cleveland Police review security after suspected terror incidents in Europe

Twelve people died after a lorry ploughed into a crowded Christmas market in Berlin on Monday in what police believe was a deliberate attack.

A further 48 were injured - at least eight seriously - when the vehicle rammed into the market outside the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in the capital, where tourists and locals were shopping and drinking.

The carnage came hours after Russia’s ambassador to Turkey was gunned down at a photography exhibition in Ankara.

Diplomat Andrei Karlov was gunned down at a photography exhibition, with the killer named by the Turkish authorities as 22-year-old riot policeman Mevlut Mert Altintas.

In the wake of the incidents, Cleveland Police chiefs have said that the threat level is currently at “severe” and as a precuation for the force is reviewing its plans for the Christmas and New Year break to provide reassurance to the public.

A spokeswoman for the force said: “Cleveland Police has detailed plans for protecting public events over the Christmas and New Year period.

“These already recognise that the threat level is at ‘severe’, meaning an attack is highly likely, and have considered a range of threats.

“As a matter of routine, as a precaution, we review our plans after attacks overseas, and we are doing so at present following the awful incidents in Berlin and Ankara last night.”