German Police Defuse 21 Explosive Devices in Power Grid Sabotage Probe
Investigation into Attacks on Germany's Electricity Grid
Discovery of Explosive Devices
BERLIN, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Prosecutors in the eastern German state of Saxony said on Monday that authorities had found a total of 21 explosive devices as part of their investigations into attacks on the electricity grid that have kept authorities on high alert for days.
Investigators discovered nine additional homemade explosive devices over the weekend near high-voltage power lines south of the Graustein substation in the eastern German district of Goerlitz, taking the total number discovered to 21, police and prosecutors said in a joint statement.
Context of Infrastructure Sabotage
European Concerns Over Critical Infrastructure
Germany has been the focus of European fears about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure, as it experienced a series of sabotage incidents on the power grid last week after a drone attack in August at Leipzig/Halle for which the government formally blamed Russia.
Suspect and Ongoing Police Search
German police said on Friday they were searching for a man who sent letters claiming responsibility for a series of sabotage attacks on the power grid last week after they found what appeared to be explosives at his home. The man is still at large.
Related Incidents and Investigations
Berlin Transformer Substation Fire
Initial Findings
Initial findings into a fire at a transformer substation in Berlin earlier on Monday, which police had said was being investigated, showed the incident was caused by a technical fault, Spiegel reported citing Police Commissioner Barbara Slowik Meisel.
Security Breach in Wesel
Separately, Bild newspaper reported that police in the western city of Wesel have launched major assessment operations after the security fence around another transformer substation was found to be cut open.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Writing by Linda Pasquini, Editing by Friederike Heine)
