World

Quran burnings behind terror plans against Sweden

Two brothers have been arrested in Germany on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack against a church in Sweden.

"We can confirm that the target was a Swedish church, but we cannot go into details about which one or where in Sweden it is located," said prosecutor Liddy Oechtering to TT.

According to Die Welt , a 28-year-old Syrian citizen and his four years younger brother were arrested about a month ago in Hamburg and Kempten in Bavaria, respectively. Dagen was the first in Sweden to report on this.

The younger brother is now also suspected to have been directly involved in planning a possible terrorist attack. According to the newspaper, there may be possible Islamist motives, but investigators do not see a direct connection to the terrorist sect ISIS.

Investigators have gone through emails and chats between the brothers and found that they were discussing a Swedish church. But the investigation is still ongoing. "What I can say is that it seems to be related to a Quran burning that allegedly took place in Sweden and has been widely reported in the German media," said prosecutor Liddy Oechtering.

She confirms to TT that there are also suspicions of terrorism financing. The brothers are said to have lived in Germany for several years and have no criminal history.

Explosives found

During the raid on the apartment in Hamburg, police allegedly found chemicals and fertilizers that could be used to make an explosive device. However, the items found in the apartment were not ready or able to detonate, according to Welt.

Both brothers were arrested a month ago, but the younger brother who was arrested in Bavaria was only remanded in custody on Tuesday. Therefore, it will be some time before the case is heard in court, according to the chief prosecutor.

"Since both are currently in custody, but one has been only since yesterday, the investigation will take longer. I cannot say anything about when this may become relevant," says Liddy Oechtering.