Germany on look-out for ‘extremely dangerous’ Islamist
By DPA, IANSFriday, October 8, 2010
BERLIN - US officials said Friday that they believe an “extremely dangerous” militant Islamist could be on his way to Germany, after attending a terrorist training camp in Pakistan.
A US military spokesman in Germany confirmed media reports that they had tipped off German security agents about the 23-year-old, who has dual German-Turkish nationality.
The US bases in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate have raised their alert levels, the spokesman added.
Germany’s interior ministry said the man was subject to an international arrest warrant. A spokesman stressed however that there was no increased danger of terrorist attacks in the country.
Last weekend the US alerted its citizens to possible militant Islamist attacks on targets in Europe, including sites in the German capital Berlin. Germany warned against “alarmist” responses to the alert, adding that the information was not new.
On Monday, a US drone attack in Pakistan killed eight German militants and two Turkmen, according to Pakistani officials. Berlin has not confirmed the reports.
Since 2009, security agents have observed an increase in travel between Germany and the Afghan-Pakistani border region, largely controlled by Taliban and Al Qaeda forces.
German authorities say they have concrete evidence that 65 people have returned from the region after undergoing militant training, of whom around 40 are thought to have been trained in explosives.
