Germany arrests suspected Hamas members believed to be targeting Jewish institutions

German authorities have arrested three suspected foreign operatives of Hamas they believe were preparing a serious act of violence in Germany, prosecutors say.

The three men are suspected by prosecutors of being involved in procuring firearms and ammunition for Hamas since at least the summer of this year to be used for assassinations targeting Israeli or Jewish institutions in Germany, they say.

“In the course of today’s arrests, various weapons, including an AK-47 assault rifle and several pistols, as well as a considerable amount of ammunition, were found,” says the federal prosecutors in a statement.

The three, identified in line with German privacy laws only as German citizen Abed Al G., Wael F. M., born in Lebanon, and German citizen Ahmad I., were arrested in Berlin.

In February, four Hamas members suspected of plotting attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe went on trial in Berlin in what prosecutors described as the first court case against militants of the Islamist group in Germany.

Der Spiegel media outlet reports that anti-terror investigators observed how the accused met on Wednesday in Berlin for a weapon handover before operational forces intervened and discovered functional weapons.