A cache of weapons linked to Hamas has been uncovered in Austria, with authorities warning they could have been used to attack Jewish targets in Europe.
Five handguns and 10 magazines of ammunition were found in a suitcase at a rented storage unit in Vienna on Thursday.
“According to the current state of the investigation, Israeli or Jewish institutions in Europe were likely to be the targets of these attacks,” Austria’s home ministry said.
On Monday, a 39-year-old British citizen with “close ties” to the weapons was arrested in London.
The weapons and the suspect were part of an internationally coordinated investigation “into a global terrorist organisation with ties to Hamas” by Vienna’s intelligence agency.
In the course of its inquiries, the ministry said the service had found “suspicion that a group had brought weapons into Austria to use in possible terrorist attacks in Europe”.
“The current case shows once again that the Directorate for State Security and Intelligence has an excellent international network and takes consistent action against all forms of extremism,” Gerhard Karner, Austria’s interior minister, said. “The mission is clear – zero tolerance for terrorists.”
The British suspect is facing extradition to Germany, where he is accused of playing a key role in a Hamas terror cell allegedly plotting attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared at Westminster magistrates’ court on Monday. He is the son of a senior Hamas official, according to an ITV News report.
German authorities had already arrested three individuals in connection with an alleged plot to attack Jewish targets in Germany.
The men were identified as German citizens, Abed Al G and Ahmad I, and Lebanese-born Wael F M. Germany only identifies suspects by their first name and last initial because of privacy laws.
The arrests in Germany came on the eve of Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, and the day before the terror attack on the Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester.
Hamas has previously denied links to the three men and said the allegations were unfounded.
It is alleged by the German authorities that the British suspect had been overseeing the transport of firearms into the country and met a suspected member of the terror cell while under surveillance.
Alexander Dobrindt, the German interior minister, said police had foiled a potentially serious domestic terror plot targeting Israelis.
“A few months ago, a known terrorist suspect with Hamas connections came to Germany, and since then this person has been under surveillance,” he added.
“During this period, he attempted to obtain weapons and ammunition to carry out an attack … we assume that this threat was real.”
