BERLIN: A German court on Friday sentenced a Syrian refugee to six and a half years in jail for planning an extremist attack using a car bomb.
The 20-year-old, named as Yamen A., was in the process of acquiring the chemical products and materials necessary to build a bomb when he was arrested in the northeastern town of Schwerin in October 2017.
At the time, Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said “a serious attack has been prevented.”
According to prosecutors, Yamen A. planned to kill or injure about “200 people” with a car bomb at an undisclosed location in Germany.
He discussed bomb-making instructions in online chat groups and repeatedly tried to manufacture the powerful explosive TATP, his trial at Hamburg’s higher regional court revealed.
Prosecutors had sought a punishment of five and a half years, but judges opted for a longer sentence given the accused’s “determination” to carry out an attack, DPA news agency reported.
“You wanted to take lives, and in doing so endanger the security of the state,” said presiding judge Ulrike Taeubner.
Yamen A. arrived in Germany in 2015 at the height of the refugee influx to avoid military service at home.
Investigators believe he was radicalized over the Internet by mid-2017 and became a supporter of Daesh.
Germany remains on high alert over the risk of extremist attacks, having suffered several in recent years.
The bloodiest, claimed by Daesh, was a truck rampage through a Berlin Christmas market in December 2016 that left 12 people dead.
Germany jails Syrian refugee for planning car bomb attack
Germany jails Syrian refugee for planning car bomb attack
Indonesia’s new state mosque to hold first Eid prayers this year
- Mosque is located in Nusantara Capital City on Borneo island, a $32bn project set for 2045 completion
- Famous sculptor Nyoman Nuarta designed mosque, other government structures in new capital
JAKARTA: The state mosque in Indonesia’s planned new capital city, Nusantara, will hold its inaugural Eid Al-Fitr prayer this year, as the $62 million facility opens for its first run of Ramadan programs.
The Indonesian government has plans to relocate the capital to Borneo island to replace the overcrowded and sinking Jakarta on Java island, with the $32 billion megaproject scheduled for completion in 2045.
With a capacity of about 60,000 people, the mosque in East Kalimantan opened to the public last month, at the beginning of Ramadan.
“This mosque symbolizes that we are building the Nusantara Capital City with careful attention to spiritual, social and environmental aspects,” Troy Pantouw, spokesperson for the Nusantara Capital City Authority — the agency overseeing the new capital city — told Arab News on Saturday.
“We will hold Eid Al-Fitr prayers here and we are hoping that it would mark a historic momentum of unity here at Nusantara Capital City.”
Locally known as Masjid Negara, construction of the state mosque began in 2024. Its design was spearheaded by Balinese sculptor Nyoman Nuarta at the request of former President Joko Widodo.
Nuarta is one of Indonesia’s most famous visual artists and creator of the country’s tallest statue, Garuda Wisnu Kencana, located in Bali.
The 72-year-old is also the designer behind other main structures in Nusantara, including the new state palace.
This Ramadan marked many firsts for Masjid Negara, including its first taraweeh on Feb. 18, which was attended by thousands of worshippers in East Kalimantan.
In the same complex where the state mosque is located, the government has plans to build Christian churches, and Buddhist, Hindu and Confucian temples.
Indonesia, home to the world’s largest population of Muslims, officially recognizes Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism as religions.
“A church is now being built in the complex, and in the future there will also be houses of worship belonging to other religions. This reflects Nusantara’s values of harmony and respect,” Pantouw said.
“From the start, this area was designed to represent inter-religious harmony. We want the Nusantara Capital City to stand as a concrete example of how physical developments can be parallel to efforts to build tolerance in society.”
