German police arrested three alleged members of al-Qaida on Friday, as a report said they had been plotting attacks in Germany. The prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe said the trio had been detained early Friday and would appear before a judge on Saturday. A news conference has been scheduled afterwards.Bild reported that the three were Moroccans residing in North Rhine-Westphalia and were caught with "large amounts of explosives". The newspaper said they were thought to be plotting attacks in Germany. The paper reported that they may have been targeting the Eurovision Song Contest in Düsseldorf on May 14.
Bild identified the three as Abdeladim K., Jamil S. and Ahmed Sh.
So they aren't Hans, Gert and Dieter, eh...
German authorities boosted security measures in November after US officials warned of an al-Qaida plot to implement "Mumbai-style" attacks in Europe.
Last week, US authorities handed over to Germany the source of the tip, Ahmed Wali Siddiqui, who had been held for nine months in Afghanistan. According to German media, Siddiqui met with al-Qaida's third in command, Sheikh Yunis al-Mauretani, who brought him into the plot for an attack in Europe.