On February 3, 2026, German authorities announced the arrest of two men suspected of attempting to sabotage German Navy ships in the Hamburg harbor. The suspects, a 37-year-old Romanian and a 54-year-old Greek, allegedly worked in the harbor and reportedly filled a ship’s motor block with about 20 kilograms of radioactive pellets, damaged freshwater pipes, and disabled circuit breakers. The sabotage attempts were detected in time, preventing damage to the ships and avoiding danger to the Federal Republic of Germany. Investigations included searches of residences in Hamburg, Greece, and Romania and involved European law enforcement agencies such as Europol and Eurojust. Officials suspect the men acted as low-level agents for a foreign Auftraggeber. Intelligence agencies had recently warned of potential sabotage threats from Russia targeting German military institutions, with prior cases reported in February 2025. The affected ships are the corvettes ‘Köln’ and ‘Ermsel’—modern classes of German Navy vessels built by Blohm+Voss shipyard, which confirmed a police operation and stated cooperation with authorities.
Category: Terrorism & Criminal Proxy Tactics
Subcategory: Terrorism
Incident Type: Bomb threats, assassination plots, targeted killings
Country: Germany
Source report: www.zdfheute.de/politik/d…
