When the Paris attacks began, Germany was playing a soccer match with France at the Stade de France, the stadium outside of which three suicide bombers blew themselves up, killing one bystander.
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An worldwide friendly football match between Germany and the Netherlands in Hannover was cancelled at short notice while security fears also led to the evacuation of a second venue where a music event was set to take place.
“The friendly match tonight has been cancelled”, police said in an announcement shared across social media and over the public address system inside the ground.
The Associated Press agency reported there had been a bomb threat about an hour earlier outside the stadium, with streets leading to the ground being sealed off before the all-clear was given. Most fans were still waiting outside when the order to evacuate came.
This is a developing story and it will be updated.
Federal Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere took responsibility for calling off Tuesday’s game.
The postponement comes just four days after Germany’s match against France in Paris was targeted by terrorists as part of a coordinated attack on the capital. She flew back to Berlin.
The Minister of the Interior for the state of Lower Saxony, Boris Pistorius, said: “No explosives have been found and no arrests have been made”.
Mr Kluwe encouraged people in Hannover to go home, stay away from stadiums and not move about in large groups.
Rauball added that the German players left Hannover by late evening through various means, and that the Dutch team was flying out.
“It’s a shame for many football fans who were looking forward to a great game, a game which was to be played under different conditions to usual football games – in the spirit of respect, and as a sign against violence and terrorism”.
At least one of the ISIS attackers in Paris tried to gain access to France’s national soccer stadium.
Germany press officer Jens Grittner said that the team bus was redirected to a “safe place”, and that this was all he could say for the moment.
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Security in the area had been very tight, with police armed with machine guns and maintaining a very obvious presence in the city.
