Foreign Affairs

Germans Knew Berlin Christmas Market Terrorist Planned To Attack Nearly A Year In Advance

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Germany’s intelligence services knew Berlin Christmas market terrorist Anis Amri downloaded bomb making instructions on his phone nearly a year prior to a Dec. 2016 incident, German media reports.

German police were reportedly approached by an informant about Amri in Nov. 2015 and had his cell phone under surveillance when they learned of him downloading terror instruction manuals. Ten months prior to the attack German authorities also knew that Amri was using his cell phone to message Islamic State operatives in Libya.

The damning report from German media reveals even more known red flags in Amri’s past, who’s attack marked one of the deadliest terror incidents in the country’s history. Amri was a Tunisian refugee who may have entered Europe as early as 2011. He spent four years in an Italian jail before taking advantage of Germany’s open door policy for refugees, Italian media reported.

German authorities rejected Amri’s asylum application but did not deport him because the Tunisian government refused to confirm his identity. Amri was subsequently released, and allowed to remain unmolested in Berlin for months.

Along the way Amri was considered so dangerous by U.S. intelligence agencies, he was at one point on a U.S. no-fly list. He was killed by Italian police days after his attack in a shootout after a routine identity check.

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