Terrorism risk escalates ahead of elections
Three months ahead of national elections, German security experts are meeting in Berlin to discuss the danger of terrorist attacks in the country, daily Süddeutsche Zeitung reported on Thursday.
Leaders from the domestic intelligence service, federal police and the Interior Ministry will meet in Berlin on Thursday for talks on possible terrorist activity, with more meetings to come in the next weeks, according to the paper.
“We are currently finalising the entire security catalogue and preparing ourselves for a possible chaos phase,” a high-ranking security official told the paper.
Officials plan to increase preventative measures and surveillance of suspected terrorists in the Islamist scene, where officials believe there may be discussion of using the election to increase pressure on the government to remove German troops from Afghanistan, the paper reported.
The “background noise” in the scene has recently been "unusually swollen" the security official said. But the paper reported there have been no concrete indications that a specific attack is being planned.
Süddeutsche Zeitung likened the terrorist risk level to that leading up to the World Cup, held in Germany in 2006. Security experts report that there has been a call within the Islamist community to be on the lookout for German soldiers and tourists.
Comments
See Also
Leaders from the domestic intelligence service, federal police and the Interior Ministry will meet in Berlin on Thursday for talks on possible terrorist activity, with more meetings to come in the next weeks, according to the paper.
“We are currently finalising the entire security catalogue and preparing ourselves for a possible chaos phase,” a high-ranking security official told the paper.
Officials plan to increase preventative measures and surveillance of suspected terrorists in the Islamist scene, where officials believe there may be discussion of using the election to increase pressure on the government to remove German troops from Afghanistan, the paper reported.
The “background noise” in the scene has recently been "unusually swollen" the security official said. But the paper reported there have been no concrete indications that a specific attack is being planned.
Süddeutsche Zeitung likened the terrorist risk level to that leading up to the World Cup, held in Germany in 2006. Security experts report that there has been a call within the Islamist community to be on the lookout for German soldiers and tourists.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.