The trial of four Hamas terrorists accused of managing secret weapon stockpiles across Europe for terror attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets began in Germany on Tuesday. Authorities suspect that the weapons were intended for attacks on the Israeli embassy in Berlin, the area surrounding Tempelhof Airport in the capital, and the U.S. Air Force base in Ramstein, Germany.
German law enforcement identified the four defendants as Abd al-Hamid al-A., Mohammed B., Nazih R., and Ibrahim al-R. They were arrested in December 2023. In accordance with German privacy laws, prosecutors disclosed only their first names and the initials of their last names. The defendants are being charged with membership in a foreign terrorist organization.
According to German security officials, the defendants’ activities were not directly linked to the October 7 attack in Israel, as early signs of their operations were detected months prior. However, a report in Tagesspiegel, cited by Bild, claimed the cell had been instructed to prepare weapon stockpiles for "supportive attacks" designed to coincide with the attack on Israel.
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Bild described the suspects as "external agents," Lebanese nationals tasked with managing weapons depots across Europe. Two of the suspects were apprehended in Berlin, while the other two were arrested in Rotterdam in December 2023. They have been held in custody since their arrests. According to Bild, initial information about the cell came from a "foreign intelligence service." Following the arrests, German officials noted that Mossad announced international cooperation had led to the exposure of Hamas’s European terror network.
As part of the investigation, German police raided five locations, including Ibrahim al-R.’s apartment in central Berlin and a restaurant in the city. The indictment states that the defendants acted on behalf of Hamas over an extended period and were under the direct command of the organization’s military wing.
According to Bild, the terror network’s activities began in the spring of 2019, when Ibrahim al-R. established a weapons depot in Bulgaria containing ammunition and firearms, including an AK-47. In the summer of the same year, he cleared a weapons cache in Denmark and smuggled a handgun into Germany. Reports indicate the cell received direct orders from the deputy commander of Hamas’ military wing in Lebanon, "Abu Khaled," who was assassinated by Israel in southern Lebanon in November 2023. The cell also attempted to find a location to store weapons in Poland but was unsuccessful.
The trial is being held in Berlin’s most secure courtroom, Room 142. The space is completely sealed, windowless, equipped with an independent ventilation system, blocks cellular transmissions and is accessed via winding corridors. Defendants are seated in separate bulletproof glass enclosures, while the audience and journalists are separated from the judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys and witnesses by similar glass partitions.