Germany Says Hamas Suspect Planned Major Attack on October 7 Anniversary

German prosecutors said a Hamas activist in Europe had planned a major attack and was ready to carry it out on October 7, the anniversary of the 2023 assault on Israeli border communities. Federal prosecutor Jens Rommel said at an annual press conference in Karlsruhe on Tuesday morning that investigators found a pre-recorded video among the suspect’s belongings, in which he claimed responsibility for a foiled attack.

German investigators believe Hamas was preparing a specific large-scale attack in Europe for the 2025 anniversary. Since last fall, German law enforcement has arrested nine suspects for supporting Hamas and being members of the group, according to a report by Kan 11. Prosecutors say they were involved in transporting and storing weapons and ammunition for Hamas at least since summer 2025.

The first three suspects in the network were detained on October 1, 2025, just days before the anniversary. In the months that followed, six more men were arrested in connection with the case in Germany and other European countries, most recently in Denmark at the end of May, and earlier in Britain and Cyprus. Prosecutors also say one defendant is suspected of storing weapons in Vienna, Austria.

Separately, at the end of March, the Berlin Higher Regional Court sentenced four members of a Hamas sabotage cell to several years in prison. The court said they had searched for weapons caches in Germany, Poland, Denmark and Bulgaria, among other places, and convicted them of membership in a foreign terrorist organization. It was the first time Germany’s top court system ruled that Hamas is a foreign terrorist organization under German criminal law.