Four members of the Islamist militant group Hamas have been detained on suspicion of planning attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe, German prosecutors said in a statement on Tuesday.
Three of the suspects were detained in Berlin and another was detained in the Netherlands, according to the prosecutors © Mena Today
Four members of the Islamist militant group Hamas have been detained on suspicion of planning attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe, German prosecutors said in a statement on Tuesday.
Three of the suspects were detained in Berlin and another was detained in the Netherlands, according to the prosecutors.
Dutch national Nazih R was arrested by police in Rotterdam, while Lebanon-born Abdelhamid Al A and Ibrahim El-R, as well as Egyptian national Mohamed B, were arrested in the German capital, they said.
All four have been longstanding members of Hamas with close links to the leadership of the group's military branch, said prosecutors.
Abdelhamid Al A had been tasked by Hamas leaders in Lebanon with sourcing weapons. The weapons were due to be taken to Berlin and kept at the ready for potential terrorist attacks against Jewish institutions, said prosecutors.
"Following the terrible attacks by Hamas on the Israeli population, attacks on Jews in Jewish institutions have also increased in our country in recent weeks," said German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann in a statement on the detentions.
"We must therefore do everything we can to ensure that Jews in our country do not have to fear for their safety again," he said.
European authorities have warned of an increased risk of attacks by Islamists radicalised by the Israel-Hamas war.
Reporting by Petra Haverkamp
Israel killed a commander of the Palestinian militant group Hamas in an airstrike on southern Lebanon on Friday, further testing a ceasefire that halted last year's war between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah group.
Israeli troops moved into an area of northern Gaza to expand what they call a security zone around the edge of the enclave, the military said on Friday, days after the government announced plans to seize large areas with an operation in the south.
The Israeli military is conducting an investigation into an incident in Gaza in which a number of emergency and aid workers were killed, a military spokesperson said on Thursday, while rejecting that the killings could be called an "execution".
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