BERLIN: German police detained on Tuesday two Afghan citizens accused of planning to attack police near the Swedish parliament in response to the burning of copies of the Qur’an, the Muslim holy book, federal prosecutors said.
The suspects, identified only as Afghan citizens Ibrahim M.G. and Ramin N., were detained in the eastern city of Gera, the federal prosecutor’s office said in a statement. The men were only identified by their first names and initial, according to German privacy laws.
The prosecutors said the Daesh group’s affiliate in Afghanistan tasked the suspects in mid-2023 with carrying out an attack in Europe in response to Qur’an burnings in Sweden and other countries.
The pair made preparations for an attack on police and other people near the parliament in the Swedish capital, Stockholm, “in close coordination” with Daesh members, including doing online research of the location and tried unsuccessfully to procure weapons, the statement said. The attack never materialized.
Anti-Islam activists have carried out a string of public desecrations of the Qur’an in Sweden, sparking outrage among Muslims around the world and threats from Islamic extremists. In October, a gunman killed two Swedish soccer fans before a match in Brussels.
Swedish authorities had raised the terror alert to its second-highest level in August. They were concerned of a similar escalation as the fury Denmark faced from Muslim countries in 2006, following the publication of newspaper caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad.
Danish consulates and embassies were burned and the cartoonists faced death threats from radical Islamists. Danish officials’ attempts to explain how such caricatures were protected under freedom of speech were widely dismissed in the Muslim world.
Prosecutors said Ibrahim M. G. joined the Daesh affiliate in August 2023. Together with Ramin N., he had raised 2,000 euros ($2,170 ) in donations for the Daesh group to help a member jailed in northern Syria.
The Afghans are suspected of crimes including providing support to a terrorist organization, conspiracy to commit a crime, and infringements against trade laws.
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German police detain 2 Afghans for plotting an attack near Swedish parliament over Qur’an burnings
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German police detain 2 Afghans for plotting an attack near Swedish parliament over Qur’an burnings
- The suspects, identified only as Afghan citizens Ibrahim M.G. and Ramin N., were detained in the eastern city of Gera
- Prosecutors said the Daesh group’s affiliate in Afghanistan tasked the suspects in mid-2023 with carrying out an attack in Europe in response to Qur’an burnings in Sweden
Thai runner-up party seeks criminal case against election officials
- A Thai political party that came second in this month’s vote filed a criminal complaint Thursday against the nation’s election commissioner
BANGKOK: A Thai political party that came second in this month’s vote filed a criminal complaint Thursday against the nation’s election commissioners, accusing them of violating election laws, the party’s deputy told AFP.
The reformist People’s Party “submitted a case” to a criminal court against seven election commissioners, the Election Commission’s secretary-general and another election official, deputy party leader Wayo Assawarungruang said.
“Two charges involve wrongful exercise of duties, and the last charge we claimed was about marking ballots with QR codes and barcodes which allow the votes to be traced and not kept secret as it should be,” Wayo said.
The Election Commission confirmed the victory of caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s conservative Bhumjaithai party on Wednesday, ratifying most of the vote results.
Bhumjaithai won 170 constituencies, the most of any party, while People’s Party — which had been polling first ahead of the election — came in second, with 88 constituencies, the commission said.
Some citizens and experts raised concerns after election day that QR codes and barcodes found on ballots could be used to identify individual voters.
But the commission said the markings were to ensure electoral security and prevent the use of fake ballots.
The Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases said it will decide whether to hear the case by March 24, according to Wayo.
If the court takes up the case, the nine face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and the loss of their political rights for a decade.
The reformist People’s Party “submitted a case” to a criminal court against seven election commissioners, the Election Commission’s secretary-general and another election official, deputy party leader Wayo Assawarungruang said.
“Two charges involve wrongful exercise of duties, and the last charge we claimed was about marking ballots with QR codes and barcodes which allow the votes to be traced and not kept secret as it should be,” Wayo said.
The Election Commission confirmed the victory of caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s conservative Bhumjaithai party on Wednesday, ratifying most of the vote results.
Bhumjaithai won 170 constituencies, the most of any party, while People’s Party — which had been polling first ahead of the election — came in second, with 88 constituencies, the commission said.
Some citizens and experts raised concerns after election day that QR codes and barcodes found on ballots could be used to identify individual voters.
But the commission said the markings were to ensure electoral security and prevent the use of fake ballots.
The Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases said it will decide whether to hear the case by March 24, according to Wayo.
If the court takes up the case, the nine face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and the loss of their political rights for a decade.
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