Christmas Eve worshippers to face security screening at Cologne cathedral as police cite attack risk

2024-12-25 13:38:40 source:lotradecoin offers category:Invest

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Cologne police acting on indications of a possible attack searched Germany’s landmark cathedral with sniffer dogs Saturday and said worshippers attending Christmas Eve Mass would undergo security screening before being allowed in.

In Austria, police in Vienna also said they were taking heightened security measures around churches and Christmas markets, deploying both uniformed and plainclothes officers.

Neither police agency specified the threat, but the German news agency dpa said authorities were responding to signs of a possible attack by Islamic extremists, without citing a specific source.

Michael Esser, head of the criminal investigation department of the Cologne police, said in a news release that the threat indications pointed to New Year’s Eve rather than Christmas, but added that “we are putting everything possible in motion for the security of cathedral visitors on Christmas Eve.”

Cologne’s towering cathedral, whose twin spires are 157 meters (515 feet) tall, is a major tourist destination visited by some 6 million people a year.

Police and cathedral officials urged those attending Mass on Sunday evening to arrive early and not bring bags or purses.

The European Union’s home affairs commissioner, Ylva Johansson, warned on Dec. 5 that Europe faces a “huge risk of terrorist attacks” over the Christmas holidays due to fallout from the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

More:Invest

Recommend

Trump will be honored as Time’s Person of the Year and ring the New York Stock Exchange bell

NEW YORK (AP) — About six months ago, Donald Trumpwas sitting in a courtroom in lower Manhattan list

Dirt bike rider dies in crash at Maine motocross park

MINOT, Maine (AP) — A 19-year-old dirt bike rider was killed when he crashed on a specially designed

Heat rash treatment: What to know about the condition and how to get rid of it quick

For most, summertime shine is a welcome change after a cold winter, but the summer heat comes with i