London

At least 30 people, including children, were injured, some of them seriously, when a car drove into a carnival procession in a town in Germany's Hesse state on Monday, police said.

The incident was reported at around 2.30 a.m. from the town of Volksmarsen, the BBC reported.

Police have taken the driver of the car - a 29-year-old German citizen - into custody and investigations are on, it added. Local media reported police as saying it was an attack but did not seem to be politically motivated. The prosecutor's office in Frankfurt said that the suspect was receiving medical attention and would be brought before an investigating judge soon.

German media also cited eyewitnesses as claiming that the driver of the silver Mercedes, had deliberately speeded up as he approached the procession and seemed to target the children. He had also broken through barricades.

The procession was being taken out on 'Rosenmontag' (Rose Monday), a carnival day celebrated in some parts of Germany, as well as parts of Austria, Belgium and Switzerland.

As a precaution, all parades in Hesse have been cancelled.

Hesse state leader Volker Bouffier said he was "shocked" by the incident, which had left "many innocent people seriously injured". Sharing his condolences with the victims and their families, he, however, urged people not to speculate about possible motives.

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