Germany: Teens allegedly planned Christmas market attack

Two German teenagers are accused of plotting a terror attack on a Christmas market in the western German city of Leverkusen, German prosecutors said on Thursday.

The suspects, a 15-year-old boy in North Rhine-Westphalia and a 16-year-old boy in the eastern state of Brandenburg, were arrested earlier on Wednesday.

What do we know about the alleged terror plot?

Officials said the 15-year-old boy posted in a chat group about a plan to attack a Christmas market in Leverkusen, a city near Cologne in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

The teenager allegedly claimed to have acquired gasoline for what prosecutors called “a fuel-induced explosion of a small truck.”

Prosecutors alleged that two teenagers planned to leave Germany after the attack to join an offshoot of the so-called “Islamic State” group in Afghanistan.

Investigators are examining evidence collected at the 15-year-old boy’s home, including hard drives. Investigators did not find any stocks of fuel.

Neither of the suspects was named, as is typical under Germany’s strict privacy laws for juveniles accused of crimes.

The news comes as Germany’s domestic intelligence agency said that the threat situation in the country has escalated since Hamas’ October 7 terrorist attack in Israel.

The agency said there was an increased risk that lone assailants could become radicalized and attack “soft targets.”