Terror attack on Bavarian Christmas market foiled by police
The 37-year-old suspect from Iraq had allegedly photographed the market in Augsburg and discussed driving a car through it.
German authorities foiled a potential terror attack on a Christmas market in Bavaria after a tip-off from a foreign intelligence agency.
The 37-year-old suspect from Iraq was arrested on Wednesday evening in shared accommodation for asylum-seekers in Augsburg, German newspaper Welt reported. A spokesperson for the Bavarian police confirmed the arrest Friday morning.
Welt, a sister publication of POLITICO in the Axel Springer Group, cited sources saying the suspect had disseminated posts on social media glorifying Islamic State (IS) and photographed the Christmas market in Augsburg. He allegedly talked about wanting to drive a car through the market, according to the report.
German authorities were alerted about the suspect’s online activities by a foreign intelligence agency, Welt reported. After his arrest he was detained awaiting deportation.
A Christmas market in Berlin was targeted in a terror attack in 2016, with a man who pledged allegiance to IS driving a truck through the crowd, killing 13 people. Strasbourg’s Christmas market was the scene of another deadly attack by an IS-linked extremist in 2018 that killed five people.
Germany is heading to a snap election in February after the collapse of its three-party coalition last month, amid a heated debate over migration and a surge in support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
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