Prosecutors in Germany have announced the arrest of three teenagers on suspicion of planning an attack, according to official sources.
Two girls aged 15 and 16, along with a 15-year-old boy, were apprehended as they were believed to be “strongly suspected of planning an Islamist-motivated terror attack and of having committed to carrying it out,” prosecutors stated in a release on Friday.
The trio, hailing from the Dusseldorf region in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, is alleged to have plotted acts of “murder and manslaughter,” as well as preparing “a serious act of violence endangering the state,” the statement indicated.
The state’s Central Office for the Prosecution of Terrorism sought an arrest warrant for the teenagers over the Easter holiday.
Operating within a chat group, the individuals had not specified a date or location for the attack, but investigators asserted they “certainly saw the danger.”
Further details regarding the alleged plot were not disclosed by authorities, citing the suspects’ young age and the ongoing investigation.
However, according to Bild newspaper, the group purportedly planned to target worshippers in churches and police stations using knives and Molotov cocktails, inspired by the ideology of the ISIL (ISIS) group.
The teenagers were also reportedly considering acquiring firearms, as reported by the mass circulation daily.
Earlier this year, German authorities apprehended three individuals in January over an alleged plot to attack the cathedral in Cologne on New Year’s Eve.
Last month, police arrested two Afghan citizens with links to ISIL for allegedly planning an attack on police near the Swedish parliament in response to the burning of copies of the Quran.
Additionally, authorities in northern Germany announced on Thursday a 5,000-euro ($5,330) reward for information regarding an arson attack on a synagogue in the city of Oldenburg last week.
Anonymous online supporters and outlets associated with ISIL have been issuing threats to attack football stadiums across Europe, including in Germany. An ISIL-affiliated outlet posted an image of a red target marker on groups of people outside Munich’s Allianz Arena ahead of a major match in late March.
Although European Champions League matches this week were under threat from the group, the tournament proceeded as planned in London, Paris, and Madrid, albeit with enhanced security measures.
