Man held near Essen on suspicion of planning an attack
Police in the western German city of Essen said Tuesday they have arrested a man after receiving "indications of a
possible attack scenario" at a pro-Israel demonstration.
Whether the man who is "known to police" was preparing an attack "is under investigation", police said in a statement.
The man was arrested at his home in Duisburg, which was searched by the police, the statement added.
According to several media reports, he is a 29-year-old German-Egyptian national who allegedly planned to attack a pro-Israel demonstration.
When contacted by AFP, a police spokesperson declined to comment on details about the possible attack or the identity of suspect.
The Der Spiegel weekly and the popular newspaper Bild reported that police had received information from a foreign intelligence service that the man had, among other things, searched the internet for pro-Israeli demonstrations and consulted jihadist content, fuelling fears that he wanted to plan an attack.
Der Spiegel, citing sources close to authorities, reported that it was unclear whether the suspect had been targeting a specific demonstration.
The alert was deemed sufficiently serious and the suspect, known as Tarik S. was arrested under the Risk Prevention Act, according to the media reports.
Police feared that the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas militants could have motivated the arrested man, who has a long history of Islamist activity, to carry out an attack.
Tarik S. travelled to Syria via Turkey at the end of 2013, where he joined the Islamic State group, according to Der Spiegel.
On his return to Germany in 2016, he was arrested at Frankfurt airport and sentenced in 2017 to five years' imprisonment for membership of a terrorist group by a juvenile court.
Hundreds of pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been taking place in Germany since Hamas launched its unprecedented attack on October 7th on Israel, which has responded by bombarding the Gaza Strip.
Several pro-Palestinian demonstrations spiralled into clashes with law enforcement, notably in Berlin.
A synagogue in the capital had also been targeted by Molotov cocktails, which did not result in damages or injuries.
On Sunday, thousands of people demonstrated in Berlin in solidarity with Israel and protesting anti-Semitism, while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to tackle the rise of anti-Jewish acts in the country.
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Whether the man who is "known to police" was preparing an attack "is under investigation", police said in a statement.
The man was arrested at his home in Duisburg, which was searched by the police, the statement added.
According to several media reports, he is a 29-year-old German-Egyptian national who allegedly planned to attack a pro-Israel demonstration.
When contacted by AFP, a police spokesperson declined to comment on details about the possible attack or the identity of suspect.
The Der Spiegel weekly and the popular newspaper Bild reported that police had received information from a foreign intelligence service that the man had, among other things, searched the internet for pro-Israeli demonstrations and consulted jihadist content, fuelling fears that he wanted to plan an attack.
Der Spiegel, citing sources close to authorities, reported that it was unclear whether the suspect had been targeting a specific demonstration.
The alert was deemed sufficiently serious and the suspect, known as Tarik S. was arrested under the Risk Prevention Act, according to the media reports.
Police feared that the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas militants could have motivated the arrested man, who has a long history of Islamist activity, to carry out an attack.
Tarik S. travelled to Syria via Turkey at the end of 2013, where he joined the Islamic State group, according to Der Spiegel.
On his return to Germany in 2016, he was arrested at Frankfurt airport and sentenced in 2017 to five years' imprisonment for membership of a terrorist group by a juvenile court.
Hundreds of pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been taking place in Germany since Hamas launched its unprecedented attack on October 7th on Israel, which has responded by bombarding the Gaza Strip.
Several pro-Palestinian demonstrations spiralled into clashes with law enforcement, notably in Berlin.
A synagogue in the capital had also been targeted by Molotov cocktails, which did not result in damages or injuries.
On Sunday, thousands of people demonstrated in Berlin in solidarity with Israel and protesting anti-Semitism, while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to tackle the rise of anti-Jewish acts in the country.
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