Man detained on weapons charges linked to Hamas arrests in Germany

A man was detained on a train from Denmark to Germany on suspicion of involvement in the procurement of weapons for the Palestinian militant group Hamas, authorities said on Thursday.

The statement from Germany’s Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office said the case is linked to the arrests of several suspected Hamas members in recent weeks, including one on Tuesday.

The man, who is to be brought before a judge in Karlsruhe on Friday on weapons charges, is alleged to have transported weapons from one suspected Hamas member in the central German state of Hesse to another in Berlin.

The arrest came two days after another suspected Hamas member was detained on the motorway as he entered Germany from the Czech Republic. He is accused of membership in a foreign terrorist organization.

Last month, German prosecutors arrested three suspected Hamas members in Berlin.

The three suspects, including a naturalized Lebanese-born man and a naturalized Syrian-born man, are accused of having procured firearms and ammunition for the group since at least the summer of 2025.

“The weapons were to be used by Hamas for assassinations targeting Israeli or Jewish institutions in Germany,” prosecutors said. However, there was apparently no concrete plan for an attack.

In early November, a weapons cache was found in Vienna linked to the three suspects arrested in Berlin. Austria’s DSN domestic intelligence agency said five handguns and 10 magazines were seized.

Last week, another man was arrested in London who is alleged to have transported weapons to Vienna. The British citizen is set to be extradited to Germany.