A soccer match between Germany and the Netherlands has been canceled over the “concrete threat” of a planned bomb attack.
Hanover, Germany is the latest site of two separate terror scares in the wake of Friday’s massacres in Paris, France. French intelligence officials gave the all clear just moments ago (as reported in a Fox News live broadcast) after a fresh tip prompted law enforcement to evacuate the area following a previous false alarm.
Fox News explains what happened:
“We had concrete evidence that someone wanted to set off an explosive device in the stadium,” Hannover police chief Volker Kluwe told German TV. Referring to another bomb threat about an hour beforehand that turned out to be a false alarm, Kluwe said, “After the first object turned out to be harmless, we got a tip that had to be taken seriously that an attack was being planned.”Investigators found a suspicious suitcase inside or near the stadium and a second suspicious device at the city’s central train station, German media and Sky News report. Police closed off part of the train station.The nearby TUI-Arena was evacuated as well, and a planned concert from the German pop band Soehne Mannheims was canceled….Police told soccer fans, “Move away from the stadium. Do not stand still.” They say the match was canceled.There were no signs of panic, with most fans seemingly accepting the decision with resignation. Streets leading to the stadium had been sealed off before the all-clear was given.
The New York Daily News carried reports from the German newspaper Kreiszeitung that officials found an ambulance stuffed with explosives sitting just outside the stadium.
According to Sky News, the profile for this match was quite a bit higher than normal—German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other members of the German government were supposed to be there:
Chancellor Angela Merkel and several other government ministers were due to attend the match to send a signal that Germany would not bow to terrorism in the wake of the Paris attacks.They were not in the stadium when the game was called off and are understood to have returned to Berlin.Spokesman for the German national side Jens Grittner tweeted that the team were en route to the stadium when they were diverted by police. He said they had been taken to a “safe place” and that he could not disclose any more information.Just hours earlier Germany’s interior minister Thomas de Maiziere warned that the terrorist threat in Germany was “very high”.It comes as armed police patrol Wembley for England’s match with France.
The French and English soccer squads will proceed with their match at Wembley stadium tonight. Law enforcement officials in London ramped up their security presence around the venue, around transportation hubs, and in busy areas around the city.
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