Hamas Members Arrested in Europe
Four Hamas members were arrested in the Netherlands and Berlin on Thursday, German public prosecutors have reported today. According to the officials, the detained individuals were planning to launch attacks on several Europe-based Jewish institutions. The terrorists were in Berlin to find weapons for executing their attacks.
In a statement, German public prosecutors said the arrested men are well-known Hamas members with very close links to the terror group’s military branch. One is a Dutch citizen, two come from Lebanon, and the fourth one is an Egyptian.
Following the arrests, German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann took to X to write that there was an increase in attacks directed at Jews in the country after Israel started bombing Gaza. The Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism reported two weeks ago that antisemitic attacks in Germany had surged 300% since October 8th.
Buschmann said the government was committed to doing everything in its power to ensure that Jewish people in Germany feel safe while in the country.
Charges to be Leveled Against Detained Terrorists
Among the charges that the four arrested men will face is being members of a terror group. Germany, the European Union, the United States, and Israel have listed Hamas as a terror organization. So, anyone identified as a member of Hamas gets prosecuted in these countries.
Meanwhile, the German public prosecutors say the plan of the arrested four had no direct connection to the Hamas October 7th attack or Israel’s response to the assault. According to their investigations, the four terrorists had been planning their attacks on Europe-based Jewish institutions even before the October assault on Israel.
The prosecutors claim Hamas leadership assigned one of the detained terrorists the responsibility of finding an underground weapon depot in Berlin at the start of the year. The man arrested in the Netherlands was asked by the terror group to help in locating the depot, which prosecutors say has yet to be found.
More Terrorists Arrested
Four other Hamas members were arrested in the Netherlands and Denmark yesterday by Danish Police in conjunction with the Israeli intelligence unit Mossad. Authorities say the four were also planning attacks on Jewish Institutions across Europe.
