Posted on 06/26/2002 2:19:18 PM PDT by knighthawk
BERLIN The German authorities have discovered leads to a possible attack on the annual Love Parade festival of techno music, drugs and nudity next month, according to the tabloid newspaper Bild.
The police infiltrated a group of Arab terrorists who smuggled 11 pounds (5 kilograms) of explosives into Berlin with the help of Albanian Muslims for possible use in a car bomb, the paper said, citing a classified report from the Berlin police. According to Bild, the group is led by a Palestinian from Lebanon.
A police spokesman declined to confirm or deny the report but said there was "no reason to think about canceling the Love Parade."
In its 14th year, the parade, scheduled for July 13, is one of the world's largest urban festivals, bringing together as many as a million people.
The executive director of Love Parade Berlin GmbH, Fabian Lenz, said that he had met with the Berlin police and had been given "no evidence that can confirm the news reports." He said that participants, "in our opinion, will be put in no greater danger than participants in any other large event in the world."
Since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, there has been a high security threat in general, German officials say. The officials say that they have been particularly attentive in regard to large public events, like the visit of President George W. Bush last month, when an area the size of 14 city blocks was closed off to ordinary citizens.
German officials, like their American counterparts, also have warned of the danger that Al Qaeda might try to bring down airliners with missiles or even model planes.
Officials say they expect soft targets to be hit by a disrupted Al Qaeda, but that those targets would have a logic to them: American or Israeli citizens and possessions in Europe or elsewhere, or sites associated with Judaism.
Rolf Tophoven, a German expert on terrorism, called the idea of a terrorist attack on the Love Parade unlikely.
"The Love Parade doesn't fit into the pattern of Al Qaeda," he said. "Al Qaeda would target U.S. institutions abroad, Jewish-American institutions or targets in the United States itself."
"Every terrorist act has a logic," he said, but he could find no logic in attacking the Love Parade.
Yes that would really upset the liberals wouldn't it?
the Euros don't get it, do they? Guess it will take an attack not thwarted to get them out of their holes.
This seems a little far fetched although I suppose that if you got a really large RC plane you could pack enough explosive in it to puncture the plane's "skin".
"But...Al Qaeda would never attack us! We hate America, just like they do!"
On a side note, the Love Parade actually started out as a birthday party. A fellow wanted to have an outdoor (on the street) birthday celebration in Berlin and applied for permission. He was denied. I can't remember if it was because there existed no "outdoor birthday party permit" or what. At any rate, he then applied for a parade permit and that was granted. It was a big success and they vowed to do it again the next year and voila! The Love Parade was born. It's gotten pretty disgusting in recent years. Pornographers like to try and make their flicks off in the bushes (or some not even in the bushes) with the parade as a background. I remember seeing programs about it on German TV. Pretty lewd.
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