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SECURITY

German parliament mulls possible mistakes made before Berlin attack

A parliamentary intelligence group is on Monday reviewing possible mistakes made by security agencies leading up to the Berlin Christmas market attack, in which 12 people were killed by a suspect known to officials.

German parliament mulls possible mistakes made before Berlin attack
A memorial set up in Berlin for victims of the Christmas market attack. Photo: DPA.

The Bundestag (German parliament) control committee is holding a special meeting on Monday afternoon behind closed doors to discuss a report by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), according to DPA information.

The report contains a chronological account of the knowledge gathered by security agencies in the past year about the main Berlin attack suspect, Anis Amri, who was killed in a shootout with police in Italy.

Amri, who on December 19th killed a Polish truck driver and used the vehicle to plow into a crowded Christmas market, had been investigated by intelligence services in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia on suspicion of planning a terror plot. He had been categorized as a security threat.

But when he moved to Berlin in February 2016, a lack of communication between security services in the two states appears to have contributed to him escaping the attentions of police. He had also been told to leave the country in June 2016, but remained free in the months that Germany tried to get official documents about him from his home country of Tunisia.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière is also set to discuss the status of the investigation into the attack in a closed meeting on Wednesday with the Bundestag interior affairs committee.

There are still many questions left unanswered, including Amri’s background, whether he had any helpers, and how he fled after the attack. Amri was able to evade capture for three days as he travelled by train through France to Italy.

Some media outlets have already reported further details from government investigators, including that Amri was dealing and consuming drugs in Berlin, and Die Welt reported that Amri had been largely financed through drug business.

Public broadcasters WDR and NDR with newspaper the Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that the BKA report reveals that together, North Rhine-Westphalia, Berlin and the BKA had around 60 reports on Amri between October 27th 2015 and December 14th 2016.

According to the media reports. Amri not only said that he wanted to commit an attack in Germany, but he had also expressed the desire to return to Tunisia. He had also been neglecting his religious obligations.

The media outlets also report that Italian security agencies clarified Amri’s identity to their German colleagues and sent photos, explaining that he had been imprisoned in Italy for four years. In Germany, Amri used numerous fake identities. It has still not been confirmed if and when Italian authorities informed Germany.

Now there are calls from within the Bundestag to launch an investigative committee into the case, though some have also called for having a special investigator to report to parliament.

Since the attack, top ministers have presented plans for reforming security and intelligence operations, including tracking potentially violent extremists with ankle monitors, and tighter restrictions for those who are caught lying about their identities.

SECURITY

Swedish Huawei ban is legal, court rules

A Swedish ban on Chinese telecoms company Huawei was confirmed in court on Tuesday, citing the country's security as a just reason for banning its equipment in a 5G rollout.

Swedish Huawei ban is legal, court rules
Photo: AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

The administrative court in Stockholm ruled that the decision of the Swedish telecoms authority, PTS, to ban the use of equipment from Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE in a new Swedish 5G telecom network last October — a move that irked Beijing — was legal.

Equipment already installed must also be removed by January 1st, 2025.

“Sweden’s security is an important reason and the administrative court has considered that it’s only the security police and the military that together have a full picture when it comes to the security situation and threats against Sweden,” judge Ulrika Melin said in a statement.

Huawei denounced the ruling, but did not say whether it would appeal.

“We are of course noting that there has been no evidence of any wrongdoings by Huawei which is being used as basis for this verdict, it is purely based on assumption,” Kenneth Fredriksen, the company’s vice-president for Central, Eastern Europe and the Nordic region, told AFP.

Huawei will now evaluate the decision and the “see what kind of actions we will take to protect our rights,” Fredriksen added.

After the UK in the summer of 2020, Sweden became the second country in Europe and the first in the EU to explicitly ban Huawei from almost all of the network infrastructure needed to run its 5G network.

Beijing had warned that PTS’ decision could have “consequences” for the Scandinavian country’s companies in China, prompting Swedish telecom giant and Huawei competitor Ericsson to worry about retaliation.

“We will continue to be available to have constructive dialogues with Swedish authorities to see if we can find pragmatic ways of taking care of security and at the same time keeping an open and fair market like Sweden has always been,” Fredriksen said.

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