The 2016 Düsseldorf terrorism plot was a reported plot by the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

(ISIL) to carry out a series of bombings and shootings in multiple sections of the German city of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

similar to those carried out in Paris in November 2015. The plot was foiled after one of the conspirators, Saleh A., 25, turned himself in to authorities in France in February 2016. He told authorities he was aware of Islamic State's "sleeper cell" in Germany preparing to carry out murders in Germany. Saleh A. was questioned several times by anti-terror experts and subsequently charged with cooperating with terrorist organization and detained. This led to arrests of three of the members of the conspiracy on 2 June, following several months of further investigation.

Plot

The plot involved up to 10 conspirators travelling from Syria to engage in a series of suicide bombings and mass shootings in central Düsseldorf. Explosives were planned to be detonated on the main road near the Stadtbahn station, while armed attackers would have carried out killings with weapons and more explosives. Attacks were to be carried out on the Heinrich-Heine-Allee street and in the Altstadt district of the city.

Suspects

Three of the suspects were registered as refugees and lived in migrants' residences around Germany, which fueled the debate over Germany's policy during the

European migrant crisis The 2015 European migrant crisis was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and Human migration, migrants into Europe, mostly from the Middle East. An estimated 1.3 million people came to the continent to request Right of asyl ...

. The man arrested in France, Saleh A., and the suspect arrested in Wriezen,

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

, Hamza C., travelled to Turkey together in May 2014, then traveled separately to Greece and north through Europe 2014 and entered Germany via the Balkan route in 2015. An explosives expert, Abd Arahman A.K., who had received training in explosives while in Syria, was arrested in Leimen,

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

, travelled to Germany in October 2014 via the Balkans. The fourth suspect, Mahood B., resided in Mühlheim, Germany before he was convinced by Saleh A. and Hamza C. to participate in the plot.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dusseldorf terrorism plot 2016 crimes in Germany 2010s in Düsseldorf Failed terrorist attempts in Germany ISIL terrorist incidents in Germany Islamic terrorism in Germany Islamic terrorist incidents in 2016 June 2016 crimes in Europe June 2016 in Germany Terrorist incidents in Germany in 2016 Factions of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Plot

Suspects

See also

References