This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-37349040
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Germany arrests three Syrian men 'on IS mission' | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Three Syrian men have been arrested in Germany on suspicion of being sent by so-called Islamic State (IS) to launch attacks, prosecutors say. | |
| The men - aged 17, 18 and 26 - were detained after a series of pre-dawn raids in the states of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony on Tuesday. | |
| Police are reported to have seized "extensive material". | |
| But no concrete missions or orders had so far been found, the Federal Public Prosecutor's office said. | |
| In a statement, it said investigations so far suggested the three had come to Germany in November 2015 with the intention of "carrying out a previously determined order [from IS] or to await further instructions". | |
| They are said to have travelled through Turkey and Greece on false passports. | |
| Investigators believe the men had volunteered for the alleged mission - and that the 17-year-old had been trained in handling weapons and explosives. | |
| They were arrested when 200 police and security officers raided several premises including three refugee shelters. | |
| Germany is on edge after two asylum seekers carried out what are thought to have been the first IS-inspired terror attacks in the country earlier this year, says the BBC's Jenny Hill in Berlin. | |
| The arrests are likely to be welcomed by ministers who are trying to reassure Germans that they can keep the country safe, she adds. |