Assassination plans uncovered - Car as "means of attack": Police arrest further suspects over Cologne terror alert
The Cologne police have taken three more terror suspects into custody in connection with possible plans to attack the cathedral on New Year's Eve. The raids took place in Duisburg, Herne and in Nörvenich in the district of Düren. Apartments were also searched there.
The "alleged means of attack" was a car, the police announced in Cologne on Sunday. At a press conference called at short notice, North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) spoke of "Islamist individuals and groups of people" who are "more active than usual at the moment".
Attack on Cologne Cathedral was probably to be carried out by car
Cologne's police chief Johannes Hermanns said that the three suspects were connected to a Tajik who was arrested in Wesel on Christmas Eve. It had emerged that he was part of a larger network that also extended to other German states and other European countries.
The investigation had revealed that the suspected attack in Cologne was apparently to be carried out using a car - "we don't know how", said the head of the Cologne police traffic directorate, Frank Wißbaum.
Officers had then investigated the underground parking garage under Cologne Cathedral with explosives detection dogs, explained Wißbaum. However, nothing suspicious was found. "As things stand, we have not found anything that points to an immediate attack," he said. However, the protective measures had been increased once again. Since the afternoon, "around 1000 police officers have been on special duty just to protect the cathedral and the population in Cologne city center", said Wißbaum.
Interior Minister Reul was convinced of the effectiveness of the protective measures. "The police have taken all precautions to ensure that citizens can celebrate a safe New Year's Eve," the CDU politician assured. "I believe that people in Cologne can celebrate calmly today."
Shortly before Christmas, the police had received information about a planned Islamist terrorist attack on Cologne Cathedral "on New Year's Eve or at the turn of the year". According to Hermanns, further checks revealed that the information was "very serious". The security authorities were focusing on a man with links to the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia.
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- The Cologne police stated that the "attack plan" involved using a car as a means of attack on the Cologne Cathedral.
- The suspicion of a terror attack on Cologne Cathedral led to three suspects being taken into custody in Herne, Duisburg, and Nörvenich.
- During the raids, apartments were also searched in these locations as part of the operation related to the "terror alert."
- The head of the Cologne police traffic directorate, Frank Wißbaum, mentioned that the suspects were connected to a Tajik individual arrested in Wesel on Christmas Eve.
- According to Wißbaum, the suspected attack in Cologne was to be carried out using a car, specifically in an underground parking garage near the Cathedral, although no suspicious findings were made during the search.
- North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul, a member of the CDU party, expressed confidence in the protective measures put in place and reassured the public that citizens could safely celebrate New Year's Eve.
- Reul emphasized that, with around 1,000 police officers on special duty, "all precautions have been taken to ensure a safe New Year's Eve in Cologne."
- The terror alert and subsequent investigations followed a tip-off about a planned Islamist terrorist attack on Cologne Cathedral, which was considered "very serious" by the security authorities.
Source: www.stern.de
