Man planned shooting attack on Israeli embassy in Berlin

A Libyan man being held by German police for allegedly plotting an attack on the Israeli embassy in Berlin was planning to use firearms in his assault, reported dpa, quoting prosecutors.

The man with suspected ties to the terrorist group Islamic State (IS) was detained in a raid by a heavily armed police unit on his flat in the Berlin suburb of Bernau on Saturday, but law enforcement agencies said nothing about how the suspect planned to carry out the attack.

More information was revealed by the Federal Prosecutor's Office in the western German city of Karlsruhe on Sunday.

The suspect, who has been named only as Omar A in line with Germany's strict privacy laws, was set to be brought before the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe later in the day. A judge will decide whether the suspect should be held in custody during the investigation.

The prosecutor's office said the Libyan national had intended to carry out "a high-profile attack with firearms on the Israeli embassy in Berlin."

"To plan the attack, the suspect exchanged information with an IS member in a Messenger chat," the statement continued.

In addition to the suspect's flat in Bernau, police also raided a flat in the western German town of Sankt Augustin in connection with the case. However, prosecutors said the residents are not suspected of crime.

Since the attack by Hamas militants and other extremists on Israel on October 7, 2023, a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents has been recorded in Germany.

Germany's interior and justice ministers stressed the importance of protecting Israeli and Jewish institutions.

"We are acting with the utmost vigilance and attention in view of the high threat posed by Islamist, anti-Semitic and anti-Israel violence," Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said after the statement by prosecutors.

"The protection of Israeli institutions in Germany is particularly important in these times when fanatical hatred of Israel and anti-Semitism are gaining ground worldwide – and Islamist terrorism is constantly finding new supporters," Justice Minister Marco Buschmann said separately.

Law enforcement agencies will continue to "do everything in their power to ensure that the dangerous plans of those who hate Israel and anti-Semites do not come to fruition," he said.