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Germany probes rail ‘sabotage’ amid Russia tensions

German police were on Sunday probing an act of "sabotage" on the country's rail infrastructure, with some officials pointing the finger at Russia in the wake of the Nord Stream pipeline explosions.

Rail passengers wait for trains on platforms at the main train station in Berlin
Rail passengers wait for trains on platforms at the main train station in Berlin on October 8, 2022 following major disruption on the German railway network. Germany is looking into the act of "sabotage" that targeted communications infrastructure. Photo: John MACDOUGALL / AFP

Important communications cables were cut at two sites on Saturday, forcing rail services in the north to be halted for three hours and causing travel chaos for thousands of passengers.

Rail operator Deutsche Bahn blamed the travel disruptions on “sabotage”, while Transport Minister Volker Wissing spoke of “a targeted and deliberate action”.

Germany’s top-selling daily Bild cited an internal document from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) as saying, in an early analysis of the incident, that an act of “state-ordered sabotage would be conceivable”.

The document pointed to the “widely separated crime scenes” where the cables were severed, in Herne in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia and in Berlin in the east, some 540 kilometres (335 miles) away.

The BKA also noted that the incident comes not long after last month’s undersea blasts on Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines between Germany and Russia.

The pipeline sabotage further raised tensions between Russia and the West, already sky-high over the Ukraine war, but Moscow denies any involvement in the blasts.

READ ALSO: ‘Trains of the future’: German rail operator plans huge modernisation

Anton Hofreiter, a Green party lawmaker and chairman of the German parliament’s European affairs committee, said Russia could have been behind the train disruptions.

“To pull this off, you have to have very precise knowledge of the railway’s radio system. The question is whether we are dealing with sabotage by foreign powers,” Hofreiter told the Funke newspaper group.

Given that the Nord Stream leaks “pointed to the Kremlin”, “we can’t rule out that Russia could also be behind the attack on the rail services,” he said.

“Maybe both are warning shots because we support Ukraine.”

Police have said the investigation into Saturday’s incident is still wide open and they have not publicly mentioned any suspects. According to local media, authorities are also looking into whether far-left extremists could be
to blame.

‘Hybrid threats’ 

With concern growing about the vulnerability of Germany’s critical infrastructure, Hofreiter called for 20 billion euros ($19 billion) to be invested in the coming years to boost security, including cyber security.

A senior German military official warned that further attacks were possible.

“Every power station, every energy transport pipe is a potential target,” Major General Carsten Breuer told Bild, speaking of growing “hybrid threats”.

Germany’s conservative opposition CDU party also called for closer monitoring of key infrastructure.

“We must rethink the security architecture of Germany and the EU,” senior CDU lawmaker Thorsten Frei told the RND media group. “The modern age of hybrid warfare requires us to adapt,” he said.

READ ALSO: More staff, longer transfer times: How rail travel in Germany is being improved

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TRAVEL NEWS

Germany to check passports on Danish border during Euros

Persons travelling from Denmark to Germany during the 2024 European Championships, which begin on Friday, should bring their passport.

Germany to check passports on Danish border during Euros

Passports will be required for travel from Denmark to Germany for the duration of the European football championships, which take place in Germany between June 14th and July 14th. The border controls will be in effect until July 19th.

German authorities have put temporary border controls in place while the tournament is ongoing, the regional police in Southern Denmark have confirmed.

Diversions will be in place at some of the road crossings, notably Frøslev, where signage has been set up to redirect drivers.

READ ALSO: How to watch the Euro 2024 tournament on TV in Denmark

Germany’s Interior Ministry earlier stated that the country’s police had been given the option of using controls on all borders from June 7th. In that statement, the ministry said all travellers should bring passports when entering Germany.

The tournament will see some 500 police officers from other countries assist the German police by patrolling in host cities, and by helping the German Federal Police.

Euro 2024 begins on Friday evening when the hosts face Scotland in Munich. Denmark’s first match is against Slovenia on Sunday.

Denmark carries out spot checks on its side of the border with Germany, as part of temporary security measures that have been used in varying forms since 2016.

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