Via Reuters News Agency
Islamic State
militants have slipped into Europe disguised as refugees, the head of
Germany's domestic intelligence agency (BfV) said on Friday, a day after
security forces thwarted a potential IS attack in Berlin.
Hans-Georg
Maassen said the terrorist attacks in Paris last November had shown
that Islamic State was deliberately planting terrorists among the
refugees flowing into Europe.
"Then
we have repeatedly seen that terrorists ... have slipped in camouflaged
or disguised as refugees. This is a fact that the security agencies are
facing," Maassen told ZDF television.
"We
are trying to recognize and identify whether there are still more IS
fighters or terrorists from IS that have slipped in," he added.
The
Berliner Zeitung newspaper cited Maassen on Friday as saying that the
BfV had received more than 100 tip-offs that there were Islamic State
fighters among the refugees currently staying in Germany.
German
fears about an attack have risen since the Paris killings. On Thursday,
German forces arrested two men suspected of links to Islamic State
militants preparing an attack in the German capital.
Authorities also
canceled a friendly international soccer match in Hanover last year and
closed stations in Munich at New Year due to security concerns.
Maassen, however, warned against alarm.
"We
are in a serious situation and there is a high risk that there could be
an attack. But the security agencies, the intelligence services and the
police authorities are very alert and our goal is to minimize the risk
as best we can," he said.