Three suspected members of the Palestinian armed group Hamas have been arrested for allegedly planning attacks on Israeli and Jewish institutions in Germany, prosecutors say.
The three men - two of whom are German citizens and one of whom is Lebanese-born - are suspected of having procured firearms and ammunition since the summer to allegedly be used in the attacks, Germany's federal prosecutor's office said.
The men, named as Abed Al G, Wael F M and Ahmad I, were arrested in Berlin on Tuesday, the office added. Their arrests came a day before Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.
Hamas controls Gaza and is considered a terrorist organisation by the EU.
The federal prosecutor's office stated that during the course of the arrests, various weapons, including an AK 47 assault rifle and several pistols, and a significant amount of ammunition, were found. It added: The weapons were intended for use by Hamas in assassination attacks on Israeli or Jewish institutions in Germany.
German media report that the men were arrested when they met for a weapons handover in the capital. Police searches also occurred in Leipzig and Oberhausen around the time of the Berlin arrests.
The three have been charged with preparing a serious act of violence that could endanger the German state and membership of a foreign terrorist organisation. They are scheduled to appear before a federal judge on Thursday.
The arrests follow a trial that began in February involving four other Hamas members accused of plotting attacks on Jewish sites in Europe.
