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Germany arrests five Islamic State suspects planning attack on US forces
- The Tajik nationals were arrested after raids targeting several flats and six other locations in North Rhine-Westphalia
- The five men had been planning to attack targets, including US airbases and had already ordered bomb parts online
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German police have arrested five Tajik nationals on suspicion that they were members of an Islamic State (Isis) group terror cell that had been planning attacks on US forces stationed in Germany, prosecutors said on Wednesday.
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Four of the suspects were arrested after dawn raids on Wednesday targeting several flats and six other locations in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Another Tajik national was previously detained.
The five were also allegedly planning attacks on individuals they deemed critical of Islam, prosecutors in the city of Karlsruhe said.
The suspects – named as Azizjon B., Muhammadali G., Farhodshoh K., Sunatullokh K. and Ravsan B. – are accused of joining Isis in January 2019 and initially planning to carry out attacks in Tajikistan.
They then switched their focus to Germany after receiving instructions from two high-ranking Isis leaders in Syria and Afghanistan, prosecutors said.
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The five men had been planning to attack targets, including US airbases and had already ordered bomb parts online, as well as stocking up on firearms and ammunition.
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