Police say two terror-related incidents
were prevented last month alone. Germany has been on heightened alert for fresh
atrocities following the death of "Islamic State" (IS) leader Abu
Bakr al-Baghdadi in October. Since the 2016 terrorist attack in Berlin's
Breitscheidplatz, German authorities have prevented a further nine attacks of a
similar nature, the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) said Sunday. Indeed,
last month alone, two acts of terror were thwarted, the BKA told Germany's Welt
am Sonntag.
The head of the organization's recently
formed department for "Islamist-motivated terrorism / extremism,"
Sven Kurenbach, told the newspaper that the death of IS leader Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi in October may provoke more attacks. Kurenbach said: "After
the death of the IS leader, there was an increasing call for terror in the West
in radical Islamist circles." The nature of the onslaughts is changing
too, as Kurenbach explained: "The trend is towards attacks with simple
means. Firearms have recently played less of a role in attack planning in this
country."
Security measures
The establishment of the new BKA department
was one of the more decisive reactions to the attack on the Berlin Christmas
market three years ago, in which 12 people died and 55 were injured. At the end
of October, BKA President Holger Münch said that seven Islamist-motivated
attacks had been prevented since 2016. Three weeks later, on November 12, 170
officers raided three apartments in Offenbach, which borders Frankfurt, and
arrested a 24-year-old German who was accused of preparing a serious crime that
threatened the state.
A week later, a 26-year-old Syrian was
arrested in Berlin on suspicion of the same crime. His home was searched as a
result. In the Offenbach case, the investigation is still ongoing, as a
spokeswoman for the public prosecutor's office in Frankfurt was reported by Welt
am Sonntag as saying. "The 24-year-old suspect is still in custody,"
she said. "The allegations against him are the subject of an ongoing
investigation." It is not yet clear whether any charges will be brought.
Online help required
Meanwhile, German Interior Minister Horst
Seehofer told the same newspaper that these foiled terrorist attempts were yet
more evidence of a functioning security force. "Our security authorities
do an excellent job, 24 hours a day, seven days a week," he said. Seehofer
is seeking further assistance from internet organizations in their efforts to
keep citizens safe. "We have strengthened the security agencies
continuously in recent years. Now we have to give them the necessary powers to
discover terrorists online."
Berlin tensions raised
On Saturday, the Christmas market at
Breitscheidplatz, the same location as the 2016 terrorist attack, was
temporarily evacuated after German police received information about suspicious
objects. Visitors were said to have left "calmly and considerately,"
according to authorities. A few hours later, the all-clear was given and two
men who had initially been detained as part of the inquiries were released.
Source: dw.com – 22 Dec 2019
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