Germany says has expelled ‘numerous' Russian agents
Russian agents are thought to have hired low-level operatives in a plot to plant explosive devices on DHL cargo planes, according to German media reports. PHOTO: EPA-EFE
BERLIN - Berlin said on April 23 it had recently expelled 'numerous' Russian agents as Germany faced an increasing threat from acts of sabotage guided by Moscow.
German authorities are doing 'everything in our power to thwart... Russian espionage, sabotage and cyberattacks', interior ministry spokeswoman Sonja Kock said at a regular press conference.
Russian intelligence services operating in Germany have been 'recently weakened by the expulsion of numerous agents', Ms Kock said, without specifying the number expelled or the timeline.
Her comments came as German media reported that Russia intelligence services were believed to have employed low-level operatives in a plot to plant explosive devices on DHL cargo planes.
Such 'disposable' agents had no position within the security services and were usually recruited via messaging apps to carry out operations for money, the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily and public broadcasters WDR and NDR reported.
The investigation into the 'potential acts of sabotage involving incendiary devices in DHL parcels are continuing intensively', Ms Kock said, declining to go into detail.
An incident in July 2024 in which parcels exploded at DHL depots in Germany and Britain has been described by Germany's domestic intelligence chief Thomas Haldenwang as a 'lucky accident' because of the limited impact.
Testifying before a parliamentary committee in October, Mr Haldenwang said 'there would have been a crash' if the parcels had exploded mid-flight on planes.
Ms Kock said April 23 that the 'danger of sabotage... has increased significantly in Germany since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine'.
German authorities are monitoring efforts by Russian intelligence to 'recruit people for money', Ms Kock said. AFP
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