German Intelligence ‘Has Evidence Terrorists Hiding Among Refugees'

The head of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Hans-Georg Maaßen, said Germany recently carried out a special operation to minimize the risk of terrorist attacks in the country, but there are still Islamists, who may plan attacks for the future.

Maaßen has not excluded the possibility of terrorists hiding among refugees coming to Europe, Deutsche Welle reported, referring to Maaßen's interview with German TV channel ZDF.

According to him, the terrorist attacks in Paris showed that Daesh "deliberately sent terrorists among refugees" to European countries. "This is a fact that the police had to face," the official stated.

According to Maaßen, there is "concrete evidence" pointing out that "there are people in Germany who plan to commit acts of terrorism." However, there is no indication that such an attack would occur in the near future, the official stated, adding that a series of recent police operations resulted in arrests of several suspected Islamists and thus reduced the terrorist threat.

German police recently conducted a series of police operations in Berlin, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, which took place in the context of recent investigation against four Algerian citizens, who are suspected of terrorism activities and connections with Daesh.

Two suspects have reportedly been arrested. Both of them lived in a refugee facility in the city of Attendorn, Germany.

In October 2015, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said Berlin was aware of the potential for terrorists to be hiding among asylum seekers streaming into Germany amid the ongoing refugee crisis. He warned that Germany was "at the center of international terrorism," adding that domestic security services were working hard to eliminate terrorist plots.