German internal intelligence warned Wednesday, November 28, 2023, against the “real” and “long-standing” risk of Islamist attacks in the country due to the war between Israel and Hamas.
“We see calls in the jihadist movement for attacks and for al-Qaeda and Islamic State (IS) to join the Middle East conflict,” said the director of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Thomas Haldenwang, in a statement.
This public warning – rare from this body in Germany – demonstrates the concern of the authorities, who fear potential “projects (attacks) against the security of Jews, Israeli institutions, but also major public events” in the country.
“The danger is real and has not been so high for a long time,” said Mr. Haldenwang.
The German authorities are concerned about the import of the conflict into their country since the beginning of the war, triggered by the bloody attack of the Palestinian Islamist movement on October 7 on Israeli soil from the Gaza Strip.
According to Israel, 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the attack, in which about 240 people were abducted and taken to the Gaza Strip.
In retaliation, Israel, which vowed to “annihilate” Hamas, relentlessly bombed the Gaza Strip until a truce came into effect on Friday. Nearly 15,000 people were killed by these Israeli strikes, according to the Hamas government.
On 2 November, Germany banned activities on its soil related to Hamas, in particular those of the Samidoun association.
This network claims to support the Palestinian prisoners and had distributed pastries in Berlin to celebrate the “victory of the resistance” after the attack of October 7.
Intelligence also points to other dangers, such as “Palestinian extremists, Turkish right-wing extremists, and German and Turkish left-wing extremists,” which “spread hatred, unrest, propaganda, or fake news on social media.” on the conflict.
At the same time, “German right-wing extremists are taking advantage of the current situation to agitate against Muslims and migrants,” Intelligence said.
