Image copyright AP Image caption Hundreds attended the funeral

Truckers sounded their horns across Poland as the first victim of the Berlin lorry attack, driver Lukasz Urban, was buried in his village.

Polish President Andrzej Duda and a German diplomat joined Mr Urban's family, friends and neighbours in Banie, near the border with Germany.

Mr Urban was shot by the attacker, who hijacked his lorry to kill 11 others and injure 48 at a Christmas market.

An autopsy report is not expected until early next month.

The assailant, a failed Tunisian asylum seeker who had pledged allegiance to so-called Islamic State, was shot dead by police in Italy days after fleeing Germany.

A presidential spokesman said earlier that President Duda would attend the funeral to express his "huge respect for Lukasz Urban who, in the eyes of many Poles is definitely a hero, a courageous person", the Associated Press news agency reports.

A letter from Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo was read out in which she described her "great pain and sadness" and expressed her sympathy with the victim's family.

Image copyright AFP Image caption President Duda (L) presented condolences to the wife (C), son (2nd R) and mother (R) of Mr Urban

Image copyright AP Image caption A bishop attended the funeral Mass

"Poles have fallen victim to terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists but the tragedy that happened in Berlin is unique when it comes to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the perpetrator,'' she added.

Polish truckers stopped their vehicles to show solidarity with their dead colleague, with some 120 expected to converge on Banie later on Friday.

Image copyright Opozita.com Image caption Mr Urban was in Berlin to make a delivery of steel beams

Family member Zofia Zurek remembered a "great guy" who had taken "excellent care of his family".

"We recognised his truck on TV, we knew it was him," she told AFP. "But until the body was identified, we had hope."

A bishop, Henryk Wejman, described Mr Urban as a man who had been open to others and conscientious in his work.

As Mass was ending, AP adds, President Duda bowed his head before the white coffin before approaching Mr Urban's wife and teenage son, then whispering to them, shaking their hands and kissing the wife's hand.</s>Hundreds gathered in Banie, a village in northwestern Poland, on Friday to honor Lukasz Urban, the truck driver killed in the attack on a Berlin Christmas market on December 19.

Under tight security measures, friends and family of Urban along with Polish President Andrzej Duda, political officials and representatives from the German Embassy attended the funeral and burial service.

Polish President Andrzej Duda paid his respects

During the service, childhood friends mourned Urban as a kind man who "never said no to anyone."

In a letter read out to the family, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said that "Poles have fallen victim in terrorist attacks before but the tragedy in Berlin is extraordinary in terms of its ruthlessness and brutality."

Outside the small stone church where the funeral was held, a group of truckers assembled in tribute to their murdered colleague. Truck drivers all over Poland paused their trips at midday and sounded their horns to express their solidarity.

Urban leaves behind a wife and a 17-year-old son. A British trucker has raised over 200,000 euros (about $210,000) online for the family, while Polish truck drivers have started a similar donation campaign. The Polish state has promised to pay for the costs of the funeral.

Hijacked in Berlin

Urban's wife touched his coffin during the funeral

Urban was delivering a steel shipment in Berlin when his truck was hijacked. The hijacker - an avowed supporter of the so-called "Islamic State" jihadist group - later drove the vehicle into a crowded Christmas market in central Berlin, killing 12 people and leaving around 50 people injured.

Police found Urban shot dead in the cab of the truck. Preliminary autopsy results show that he died roughly at the time the truck was plowing through the market - a more precise time of death is expected to be released by mid-January.

Investigators initially believed that Urban might have grabbed the truck's steering wheel or brakes during the attack, but have since concluded that an automatic breaking system stopped the truck.

Police are still investigating whether the suspected perpetrator, 24-year-old Tunisian Anis Amri, acted as a lone wolf or had help planning the attack. The alleged jihadi was shot dead in Italy when he opened fire on two policemen last Friday.

Earlier this week, a 40-year-old Tunisian man was detained because investigators found his number in Amri's phone, but German police released the man on Thursday, saying he had no link to the crime. Last Friday, Tunisian police arrested three young men suspected of forming a terror cell with Amri, among them Amri's nephew.

mb,dm/cmk (AFP, AP, dpa)</s>Polish President Andrzej Duda and hundreds of mourners on Friday attended the funeral of Lukasz Urban, the Polish truck driver who was killed and his vehicle used to crash into a Berlin Christmas market last week. People walk behind a caravan carrying the coffin the Polish driver Lukasz Urban, who was killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack, during Urban's funeral in Banie village near Szczecin, north-western Poland December 30, 2016.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Channelnewsasia.com.</s>WARSAW (REUTERS) - Polish President Andrzej Duda and hundreds of mourners on Friday (Dec 30) attended the funeral of Lukasz Urban, the Polish truck driver who was killed and his vehicle used to crash into a Berlin Christmas market last week.

The 37-year-old father of a teenage boy was among 12 people killed in the attack claimed by Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Germany's Federal Prosecutor's Office said on Thursday that Urban had died shortly before the attack and forensic tests were needed to determine whether he had been shot with a gun later found on the attacker in Milan.

Mourners packed a small church in Banie, the driver's home village, for mass, while several trucks parked nearby honked their horns to honour the driver, private TV channel TVN24 showed.

Duda laid a wreath and briefly kneeled in front of Urban's white coffin, after attending mass in the village in northwestern Poland, 15km from the German border.

Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said earlier Urban's son and wife would receive a special pension, while an Internet crowdfunding campaign started by a British truck driver has raised more than £177,000 (S$316,000) for the family.

"Poles have fallen victim in terrorist attacks before," Szydlo said in a letter to the family read during Friday's church service. "But the tragedy in Berlin is extraordinary in terms of its ruthlessness and brutality."

The suspected Berlin attacker, 24-year-old Tunisian Anis Amri, was shot dead by Italian police on Friday after a European-wide manhunt.

A local trucking association boss, Romuald Szmyt, laid the blame for Urban's death on the company due to receive his cargo of 24 tonnes of steel elements, saying its officials should not have made the driver wait to unload.

"Lukasz Urban was a very good driver," he told mourners. "He was meant to unload on Tuesday but he arrived early. Two German drivers arrived and they were unloaded on Monday. He had to wait."</s>A convoy of lorry drivers sounded their horns as they entered a Polish village on Friday, where hundreds of mourners gathered to bid farewell to another lorry driver killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

Lukasz Urban, 37, has been described as the first victim of the attack on 19 December that killed a total of 12 people.

He was waiting to deliver a shipment of steel in Berlin when his truck was hijacked by the Tunisian perpetrator of the attack.

He was shot and his body was found in the cab of the truck. Polish President Andrzej Duda joined Urban's family, friends and neighbours, gathering with them in the village church in Banie, near the border with Germany.</s>The bells of a brown stone church rang across a Polish village as hundreds of mourners gathered Friday to bid farewell to a truck driver killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

Lukasz Urban, 37, has been described as the first victim of the attack on Dec. 19 that killed a total of 12 people. He was waiting to deliver a shipment of steel in Berlin when his truck was hijacked by the Tunisian perpetrator of the attack. He was shot and his body was found in the cab of the truck.

Poland's President Andrzej Duda joined Urban's family, friends and neighbors, gathering with them in a church in the village church in Banie, near the border with Germany. Several other Polish political officials and a representative of the German Embassy to Poland were also there.

In a letter from Prime Minister Beata Szydlo, read aloud, she described her "great pain and sadness" and expressed her sympathy to Urban's family.

"Poles have fallen victim to terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists, but the tragedy that happened in Berlin is unique when it comes to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the perpetrator,'' Szydlo said.

A bishop, Henryk Wejman, delivered a homily in which he described Urban as a man who was open to others and conscientious in his work.

"His willingness to work and serve others won him the trust of other people and the openness to fellow man," Wejman said.

As the Mass was winding down, the president bowed his head at Urban's coffin. Then he approached Urban's wife and teenage son, whispering to them, shaking their hands and kissing the wife's hand.

The coffin was carried from the church and placed in a hearse, which drove it slowly through the village to a cemetery for burial, mourners walking with it.

Before the Mass, a group of truck drivers honked the horns of their trucks to honor Urban.</s>Hundreds of mourners have gathered to attend the funeral of a Polish lorry driver killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

Lukasz Urban, 37, has been described as the first victim of the attack on December 19 that killed a total of 12 people and injured at least 50.

He was waiting to deliver a shipment of steel in Berlin when his vehicle was hijacked by 24-year-old Tunisian national Anis Amri.

Mr Urban was shot and his body was found in the cab of the lorry.

There was initial speculation that Mr Urban had fought Amri seconds before his vehicle drove into the crowd, but this has since been disproved following a postmortem examination confirming the Polish driver had been shot several hours before.

Polish President Andrzej Duda joined Mr Urban's family, friends and neighbours, gathering with them in the village church in Banie, near the Polish-German border.

A day earlier, the president's spokesman said Mr Duda would attend the funeral to express his “huge respect for Lukasz Urban, who in the eyes of many Poles is definitely a hero, a courageous person.”

Several other Polish political officials and a representative of the German Embassy in Poland were also in attendance.

A letter from Prime Minister Beata Szydlo was read out in which she described her “great pain and sadness” and expressed her sympathy to Mr Urban's family.

“Poles have fallen victim to terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists but the tragedy that happened in Berlin is unique when it comes to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the perpetrator,” Ms Szydlo said.

A donation page set up for the family of Mr Urban by a British lorry driver raised some £45,000 in its first day and has since surpassed £178,000.

At Mr Urban’s funeral service, bishop Henryk Wejman described him as a man who was conscientious in his work.

“His willingness to work and serve others awakened the trust of other people and openness to others,” he said in his homily.

As the Mass was winding down, the president bowed his head before Mr Urban's coffin before approaching his wife and teenage son, whispering to them, shaking their hands and kissing the wife's hand.

The coffin was then carried out of the church and placed in a hearse, which drove slowly through the village to a cemetery for burial, mourners walking with it.

Before and after the burial, a group of lorry drivers honked the horns of their trucks to honour Mr Urban.</s>Hundreds of mourners have bid farewell to the Polish truck driver killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

Lukasz Urban, 37, has been described as the first victim of the attack that killed a total of 12 people in the German capital on December 19.

He had been waiting to deliver a shipment of steel in Berlin when his truck was hijacked by the attacker, believed to be Tunisian man Anis Amri, who was later killed in a shoot-out with Italian police. Mr Urban was shot, and his body was found later in the cab of the truck.

Poland’s president Andrzej Duda joined Mr Urban’s family, friends and neighbours in a church in the village church in Banie, near the border with Germany.

Several other Polish political officials and a representative of the German embassy to Poland were also there.

A letter from prime minister Beata Szydlo was also read out in which she described her “great pain and sadness” and expressed her sympathy to Mr Urban’s family.

“Poles have fallen victim to terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists but the tragedy that happened in Berlin is unique when it comes to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the perpetrator,” Ms Szydlo said.

Bishop Henryk Wejman delivered a homily in which he described Mr Urban as a man who was open to others and conscientious in his work.

“His willingness to work and serve others won him the trust of other people and the openness to fellow man,” Bishop Wejman said.

As the Mass was winding down the president bowed his head at Mr Urban’s coffin before offering his condolences to the dead man’s wife and teenage son.

The coffin was then carried out of the church and placed in a hearse, which drove it slowly through the village to a cemetery for burial, as mourners walked alonside it. Before the Mass, a group of truck drivers honked the horns of their trucks to honour Mr Urban.</s>Hundreds of people joined officials from Poland and Germany to attend the funeral of the Polish truck driver who was killed when his truck was used to crash into a Berlin Christmas market last week.

Lukasz Urban was among 12 people killed in the December 19 attack claimed by Islamic State.

Mourners on December 30 packed a small church in Banie, the driver's home village, while several trucks parked nearby honked their horns to honor the driver, Polish media reported.

Polish President Andrzej Duda laid a wreath and briefly kneeled in front of Urban's white coffin, after attending mass in the village in northwestern Poland, 15 kilometers from the German border.

Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said earlier that Urban's son and wife would receive a special pension, while an Internet crowd-funding campaign started by a British truck driver has raised more than $218,000 for the family.

The suspected Berlin attacker, 24-year-old Tunisian Anis Amri, was shot dead by Italian police on December 23 after a European-wide manhunt.

Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP</s>Hundreds of mourners have bid farewell to the Polish truck driver killed in the Berlin Christmas market attack.

Lukasz Urban, 37, has been described as the first victim of the attack that killed a total of 12 people in the German capital on December 19.

He had been waiting to deliver a shipment of steel in Berlin when his truck was hijacked by the attacker, believed to be Tunisian man Anis Amri, who was later killed in a shoot-out with Italian police. Mr Urban was shot, and his body was found later in the cab of the truck.

Poland’s president Andrzej Duda joined Mr Urban’s family, friends and neighbours in a church in the village church in Banie, near the border with Germany.

A letter from prime minister Beata Szydlo was also read out in which she described her “great pain and sadness” and expressed her sympathy to Mr Urban’s family.

“Poles have fallen victim to terrorist attacks carried out by Islamic fundamentalists but the tragedy that happened in Berlin is unique when it comes to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the perpetrator,” Ms Szydlo said.
The funeral of Łukasz Urban, the driver killed in the course of last week's attack on a Christmas market in Berlin, takes place in his village of Banie near the German border. President of Poland Andrzej Duda and a German diplomat attend.