German police arrest man suspected of terror plot

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - German police announced on Thursday they had arrested a man on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack against the security forces.

The 26-year-old suspect was detained in a raid on his home in Northeim on Wednesday, a small town in central Germany, Lower Saxony police and prosecutors said in a joint statement.

Officers seized chemicals and electronic components which could be used to build a remotely-detonated device.

The suspect admitted during interrogation he planned to attack police and soldiers with a home-made bomb, the statement added.

Bernd Kolkmeier, a prosecutor's office spokesman, told N24 television the suspect was a German citizen with no migration background, and is believed to have been active among what he described as "Salafists".

Last year, Germany witnessed five major terror attacks, which were carried out by radicalized young people with suspected links to the Daesh terrorist group.

The bloodiest attack was on Dec. 19 in Berlin when 12 people were killed and dozens injured when a truck ploughed into crowds visiting a Christmas market.

Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, the BfV, views Salafists as a "dangerous" group, and argues it is the source of radicalization among many young Muslims.

According to the spy agency, about 9,200 Salafists are active in the country.