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| Europe |
| Islamists in Germany: Quiet, but dangerous |
| 2021-07-02 |
| [DW] A stabbing spree in the German city of Wurzburg has renewed focus on the threat of Islamism, even if the attacker's motive remains unclear. THE LONE WOLF THREAT Authorities tied 409 crimes to "religious ideology" in 2020. That marked a 13% increase over the year before. More than 90% of those crimes were linked to Islamists; however, many were non- The report noted that sophisticated attacks plotted from abroad were "conceivable at any point," but none have actually taken place. Lone-wolf attacks, regardless of motive, are instead the bigger threat and are "meaningful for the goals of terrorist groups." Single attackers may have no formal ties to any groups or movements, the intelligence report suggested, but may be inspired by them to attack "soft" targets. That was "probably" the case in Dresden last year when two tourists were stabbed in a homophobic attack. One of them died. Another one-off attack took place in Berlin in 2020. This time it was a car that rammed motorcyclists, leaving six people injured. The suspect's "psychological impairment" may have made an Islamist motivation more appealing, the report said. Similar attacks in Germany's neighboring countries, such as La Belle France and Austria, have authorities worried about copycat crimes here. THE ONGOING ISLAMIST THREAT Nearly 700 people are classified as potential perpetrators and are under surveillance in Germany, according to a government statement from earlier this year. Most of them are suspected of having the potential to carry out crimes due to their religious fervor, largely Islamist in nature. In 2020 the government said it is aware of 240 Islamists who are on the lam and could potentially pose a threat. Some 135 of these people were reported to have German citizenship, while a third of them have other nationalities — 41 Syrians, 17 Russians, seven Iraqis, seven Turks and people from around 20 other countries. The nationality of seven Islamists was termed "unclear," while three had been registered stateless. German domestic intelligence authorities have also expressed concern about radicalization abroad that comes back home. About 1,100 Islamists are reported to have gone to Iraq and Syria since 2012. One-third of them have returned to Germany, including some who have then been sentenced to prison for various crimes. Both their incarceration and release pose a "particular challenge" to Germany's security and justice apparatus, the report said. |
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