“After the first object turned out to be harmless, we got a tip that had to be taken seriously that an attack was being planned”.
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Two police officers stand in the HDI-Arena in Hannover, Germany, Tuesday just before the stadium was evacuated before the friendly soccer match between Germany and the Netherlands. It came 4 days after suicide bombers struck near a soccer game between France & Germany throughout Friday.’s Paris assaults.
Later that same evening, two Air France flights headed from the United States to Paris were also diverted because of bomb threats, officials said.
“The security of the visitors, the teams and the staff is priority number one and the situation was as such, that I think the only possibility was to cancel the game”.
The Netherlands soccer squad arrived at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport after leaving Hanover the place the pleasant worldwide towards Germany was cancelled on account of a terror threat.
It is understood Ms Merkel was on her way to the stadium when she heard about the discovery and was taken immediately to a safe zone.
De Maiziere said he could give few details because he needed to protect the source of information, and because “part of these answers would upset the population”.
Reinhard Rauball, the German Football League president, said the cancellation of the Dutch game was a “sad day for football”.
Spokesman for the German national side Jens Grittner tweeted that the team were en route to the stadium when they were diverted by police.
Tuesday’s events in Hannover had cast doubt over whether this week’s Bundesliga action would go ahead as planned, but Rauball has now stressed the games will not be postponed as things stand.
German police say more than 750 suspected Islamists have travelled to the Middle East from Germany and the authorities know of about 70 who have returned from military training camps. After midnight, a further attack was to take place at the train station.
He urged people to keep away from stadiums and not move in large groups.
There were no signs of panic, with most fans seemingly accepting the decision. Armed police patrolled Wembley, where many among a crowd of around 80,000 that included British Prime Minister David Cameron and Prince William stood to sing “La Marseillaise” as the words were displayed on the stadium’s big screen.
Europe was a continent on edge last night as fears that a terrorist network could strike were heightened by security fears which led to the evacuation of a packed football stadium, railway station and concert venue in Germany.
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Leading up to the game, London police increased their presence around the stadium and at several busy areas, such as transport hubs, across the British capital.
