Increased security after alleged Cologne, Vienna church attack plot
Police in the German city of Cologne and Austrian capital Vienna have stepped up security measures following indications of possible attacks during the Christmas holidays.
Security authorities said on Saturday they had received information about a possible attack plan by an Islamist group on Cologne Cathedral and a church in Vienna.
The Austrian domestic intelligence service detained four people in an investigation into an Islamist network, according to the Interior Ministry on Sunday, Christmas Eve.
The Directorate for State Security and Intelligence at the Austrian Interior Ministry said interrogations with the suspects were under way. Further details could not be given.
No arrests have yet been made in connection with the alleged attack on Cologne Cathedral in the western state of North Rhine Westphalia, security sources told dpa on Sunday morning.
Police officers checked visitors to the cathedral on Sunday, as reported by a dpa reporter. The police were also present in front of the cathedral with officers and around a dozen vehicles. According to the church, tourist visits were not possible on Sunday.
Police officers searched the cathedral with sniffer dogs on Saturday evening. No explosives were found, dpa learned.
The group in question may be connected to the Islamic State Khorasan Province terrorist group, dpa has learned.
Cologne police spokesman Wolfgang Baldes said on Sunday: "We received a tip-off about a dangerous situation around Cologne Cathedral, possibly also for Cologne Cathedral, which related to New Year's Eve."
He did not want to comment on who had given the tip-off. The police would not comment on the findings, even in view of further undercover investigations.
The Cologne police made it clear that the increased security measures at the cathedral will continue for some time. "We now have to see how quickly we can actually verify this tip-off. It is certain that as long as a dangerous situation cannot be ruled out, we will of course continue these measures," said Baldes.
Despite the precautionary measures, North Rhine Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul advised people not to refrain from attending church at Christmas for fear of an attack.
"Our authorities are using all the information available to protect us in the best possible way. The measures in Cologne show this," Reul said.
"My appeal: go to church, celebrate Christmas. Fear is the currency of terrorists. We must not add to their value."
Meanwhile, France is also to increase security around churches for the Christmas period in case of possible attacks.
Police officers and gendarmes would be visibly deployed outside religious sites to protect Christians during Christmas celebrations on Sunday evening and Monday morning, French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin wrote on the online platform X, formerly Twitter.
