Things got pretty intense in Berlin. In an operation that seems straight out of a TV series, the German Federal Prosecutor's Office caused a stir this Wednesday by announcing the arrest of three men in the heart of the capital. Apparently, they weren't random. Two of the detainees have German nationality, which in itself raises a lot of questions, and the third is a Lebanese citizen. The accusations brought against them are not to be taken lightly: they are accused of being active members of the Islamic Resistance Movement, better known as Hamas, and of being plotting a series of attacks that could have caused a major disaster.
The names released by the Public Prosecutor's Office are Abed al G. and Ahmad I., both Germans, and Wael FM, the man born in Lebanon. This trio is in for a ruckus, because the charges are crushing. They are being formally accused of belonging to a foreign terrorist organization, which is already a huge mess, but they also add the charge of "preparing a serious violent act that endangers the State ." With that charge, you can imagine that the German justice system is not going to mess around. The investigation, which was clearly long-running, determined that these individuals were neck-deep in the task of obtaining an arsenal of firearms and ammunition for the organization during the European summer.
And this is where things get even murkier. What did they want the weapons for? Not exactly for hunting. According to prosecutors, all those weapons had a very clear and macabre purpose: they were to be used by the militia to carry out attacks specifically targeting Israeli buildings or the Jewish community in Germany. A tremendously symbolic attack, especially on German soil, intended to leave a deep wound and sow panic. The choice of targets is no coincidence and demonstrates cold and calculated planning to generate the greatest possible impact, not only physical but also psychological, on the entire European community.
The deployment for the arrests was like a movie. The authorities left nothing to chance, and during the raids, they encountered a surprise that confirmed all their suspicions. They found several weapons, including an AK-47 assault rifle, the famous Kalashnikov, a weapon synonymous with war anywhere in the world. In addition to the rifle, they seized several pistols and, as if that weren't enough, what the Prosecutor's Office described as "a significant amount" of ammunition. They were clearly equipped and ready to take action at any moment. The discovery of this arsenal in the heart of one of Europe's most important capitals set off all security alarms.
Now the ball is in the court of justice. The three defendants have an unavoidable date this Thursday, when they must appear before the investigating judge of the Federal Court. This will be a key moment, because it will be decided whether they will be remanded in custody, something that at this point seems a foregone conclusion. The judge will have to evaluate the evidence presented by the prosecution and determine whether the risk of flight or continued conspiracy is high enough to warrant keeping them locked up while the investigation progresses . Everything indicates that they will spend a long time in the shadows, awaiting a trial that promises to be one of the most high-profile terrorism trials in recent times in the country.
