Table of contents
- Who was arrested?
- What are the suspects accused of?
- How did the investigators track down the men?
- How dangerous is Hamas in Germany and Europe?
- What is the story behind the underground weapons depots?
- What are the reactions to the arrests?
Who was arrested?
Suspicion of terrorism - Earth depot with weapons, plans for attack on Jews - what we know about the Hamas arrests
The operation was a concerted action by European security authorities after months of investigation, and the GSG9 was also involved. Three men were arrested in Berlin: Abdelhamid al-A., Mohamed B. and Ibrahim al-R. In Rotterdam, the Dutch police arrested Nazih R. Arrest warrants have already been issued for al-A., B. and R.. Al-R. is due to appear before the investigating judge this Friday, who will decide whether to remand him in custody. In addition, two men and a young woman were arrested in Denmark. According to the news agency DPA, the security authorities in Germany do not yet believe that these suspects had any plans in common with those arrested in Rotterdam and Berlin.
What are the suspects accused of?
The arrests in Denmark are said to have been made on suspicion of preparing a terrorist attack. Details are not yet known. The arrests in Germany and the Netherlands are a different story. The Federal Public Prosecutor General at the Federal Supreme Court has stated that the suspects are "urgently suspected" of being members of a foreign terrorist organization. In the event of a conviction, the penal code provides for up to ten years in prison.
Specifically, the men are alleged to have been members of the radical Islamic terrorist group Hamas for years and to have participated in the group's operations abroad. The reason for the authorities' raid was apparently that al-A. had been commissioned by Hamas leaders in Lebanon to search for a cache of weapons in Europe. According to the investigators, the weapons were to be brought to Berlin. The alleged aim: they were to be used for attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe. The other three suspects are said to have supported al-A. in his search - apparently without success. The security authorities are not saying what kind of weapons and how many are involved. The investigators also did not say whether they may have been seized or whether the location of the depot is known. A high level of secrecy applies.
How did the investigators track down the men?
The Karlsruhe prosecution authority has not provided any information on this either. According to information from security circles, the first tip-off about the four men came last summer - whether from insiders or a foreign secret service, for example, is unclear.
How dangerous is Hamas in Germany and Europe?
According to the Attorney General, Hamas' declared goal is to destroy Israel and establish a Palestinian state between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River under Sharia law. The barbaric attack on Israel on October 7 is proof of this. However, the latest arrests are not said to be directly linked to the terrorist attack.
As far as is known, Hamas has not yet been involved in any attacks in Germany. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution estimates that there are around 450 members of the terrorist group in Germany. They have two main goals in Germany: "On the one hand, they try to support Hames by collecting donations. Secondly, they are interested in influencing the political and social discourse in Germany in a pro-Palestinian way in the interests of Hamas," according to the latest report by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. This is also done at demonstrations and in social media through anti-Semitic statements.
Germany and other Western countries have thus been seen primarily as a "safe haven" for Hamas. The fact that this has changed and that Islamist terrorists are now also threatening to carry out acts of terror here is obvious after the plans to attack Jewish institutions in Europe became known, even if the plan was apparently not yet concretely planned. "The danger is real," says ARD terrorism expert Holger Schmidt in the "Tagesschau" news program, for example. Thomas Haldenwang, President of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, also recently issued another urgent warning about the dangers of Islamist terrorism.
What's the deal with underground weapons depots?
Anyone who does not want to store their weapons at home resorts to earth depots - this was also a strategy of the Red Army Faction (RAF), which spread left-wing extremist terror in Germany, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s. These camps are often set up for a longer period of time, sometimes for several years. Rediscovering them is sometimes difficult for members of terrorist organizations: "There are earth depots from the RAF era that are also recorded on maps, but they have not been found to this day. Because nature changes, because circumstances change, because memories become blurred," explained terrorism expert Schmidt. Nobody knows how many such weapons depots exist in Germany.
What is the reaction to the arrests?
"I would like to thank everyone involved for their contribution to ensuring that Jews in Europe can continue to live in safety and peace with this successful investigation," said Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP). "We must therefore do everything we can to ensure that Jews in our country do not have to fear for their safety again." Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) said that the arrests showed "that our security authorities are extremely vigilant and act consistently". "We have the Islamist scene in our sights." Israeli Ambassador Ron Prosor said: "We have always feared it - now we know it: Hamas and its henchmen have planned attacks in Europe. Our thanks go to the security authorities who protected us this time." We must continue to be vigilant in order to stay one step ahead of the terrorists.
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- The operation to arrest the suspects was a collaborative effort between European security authorities and the GSG9, following months of investigation in Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark.
- The arrests in Denmark were made under suspicion of preparing a terrorist attack, but the details of the case are currently unknown.
- In Berlin, three men were arrested: Abdelhamid al-A., Mohamed B., and Ibrahim al-R., while a fourth man, Nazih R., was arrested in Rotterdam.
- The German security authorities do not believe that the suspects arrested in Denmark had any plans in common with those arrested in Rotterdam and Berlin.
- The Federal Public Prosecutor General at the Federal Supreme Court has stated that the suspects are "urgently suspected" of being members of the foreign terrorist organization Hamas and participating in its operations abroad.
- German authorities estimate that there are around 450 members of Hamas in Germany, who aim to support the group by collecting donations and influencing political and social discourse in Germany in favor of Hamas.
- The suspected aim of the men arrested in Germany and the Netherlands was to use weapons for attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe.
- Israel's Ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, thanked the security authorities for protecting Jews from attacks planned by Hamas and Islamist terrorists in Europe.
Source: www.stern.de
