Terror alert - Increased vigilance after fear of attacks in Cologne and Vienna
Following the terror alert for Cologne Cathedral and a church in Vienna, there is increased caution with a view to New Year's Eve. "There is currently an increased threat situation in the area of Islamist terrorism. The federal and state security authorities are therefore acting with the utmost vigilance," said a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Berlin.
In connection with the terror alert for Cologne Cathedral, the police took a suspect into custody in Wesel. Police searched an apartment in the town on the Lower Rhine with special units on Christmas Eve and took five men into custody. While four of them were released, the police announced on Tuesday evening that they had taken a 30-year-old Tajik into custody "to avert danger". There was information about him that was relevant to state security.
On Christmas Day, the Oberhausen district court confirmed the detention order until January 7 at the request of the Cologne police. CID chief Michael Esser said: "We are exhausting all legal possibilities to protect the people, the cathedral and the upcoming New Year's Eve celebrations." The police will not provide any information on the background to the detention until further notice due to ongoing investigations.
Cologne Cathedral will remain closed to tourists until further notice. "All liturgical services will take place, but tourist visits are unfortunately not possible," said the cathedral's head of security, Oliver Gassen, to the German Press Agency on Tuesday. "The cathedral will be closed between services." Normally, the cathedral is visited by more than 100,000 people from Christmas to New Year.
According to dpa, the security authorities had received information about a possible plan by an Islamist group to attack Cologne Cathedral and a church in Vienna. According to the Cologne police, the information related to New Year's Eve, but security precautions had already been increased for the Christmas festivities.
Police officers have been checking visitors to the cathedral since Christmas Eve. On Saturday evening, the police had already searched the cathedral with sniffer dogs but, according to their own statements, found nothing suspicious. The Cardinal of Cologne, Rainer Maria Woelki, thanked the worshippers for "not allowing themselves to be frightened and scared despite the situation, but for coming here courageously".
The police also increased security measures in Vienna. In Austria, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution arrested four people on Saturday. Among other things, data carriers, such as cell phones, that were seized during the searches have since been evaluated, public prosecutor Nina Bussek told dpa on Tuesday. Two men and one woman were ordered to be remanded in custody, a court spokeswoman told the APA news agency. They are being investigated for belonging to a terrorist organization in connection with terrorist crimes.
A fourth person is not being investigated on suspicion of terrorism, Bussek added. This person happened to be present when the three suspects were arrested. He was wanted for violating immigration laws and was therefore arrested.
According to dpa information, the suspected group could possibly have a connection to an offshoot of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist network, which calls itself the Islamic State Province of Khorasan (ISPK) and has been fighting an armed conflict with the militant Islamist Taliban in Afghanistan for several years. A spokeswoman for the public prosecutor's office in Vienna declined to comment.
In April, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution stressed that although the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia in Syria and Iraq had been largely defeated, the organization as a whole was far from being destroyed. Head of the authorities Thomas Haldenwang said at the time: "Among the various offshoots of IS, the "Islamic State Province of Khorasan", or ISPK for short, stands out in particular."
Since the terrorist attack on Israel by Islamist Hamas on October 7, fears have been growing that there could also be attacks in Germany. According to the police in Austria, the terror alert level is still elevated. The additional precautionary measures were taken to maintain general security in Austria.
Church services Cologne Cathedral Cologne police press release Cologne police press release on detention
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- The increased vigilance in Germany extends beyond Cologne, with authorities in Wesel also on high alert due to the terror alert at the local court.
- In response to the terror alert for Cologne, the Lower Rhine town saw police search an apartment on saint's eve, resulting in five men being taken into custody.
- The Oberhausen district court, located in North Rhine-Westphalia, extended the detention order for the suspected individual until January 7 at the request of the Cologne police.
- Despite the terror alert, Christmas Day saw the continued holding of church services at Cologne Cathedral, albeit with strict visitor controls in place.
- The Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior, like its German counterpart, has been on high alert following the terror alert in Vienna, urging men and women to be vigilant against terrorism.
- The terror alert in Vienna led to four individuals being arrested by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, with two of them remanded in custody on suspicion of involvement in a terrorist organization.
- The increased security measures in Vienna were not limited to churches, with police also conducting thorough checks on visitors to popular tourist attractions.
- The terror alert in Austria came on the heels of concerns about potential attacks following the terror alert in Germany, with fears growing since the October 7 attack in Israel.
- The suspected group linked to the terror alerts in both Germany and Austria is believed to have ties to an offshoot of the Islamic State terrorist network operating in Afghanistan.
- In response to the terror alerts, both German and Austrian authorities have stressed the importance of continued vigilance and cooperation between law enforcement and the public to prevent any potential attacks.
Source: www.stern.de
