Projectile event in Bulgaria on Thu 28th March 2024

German investigators have unearthed a suspected Hamas weapons stockpile in Bulgaria, as reported by Die Zeit. The discovery, confirmed by Deutsche Welle, Spiegel, and ARD, came after the arrest of Hamas-affiliated individuals in mid-December. A mobile phone seized during the arrest contained images of firearms and related equipment, leading authorities to the hidden cache.The digital trail from the photos directed investigators to a location in southern Bulgaria, where firearms were found buried under a tree in a plastic bag. Some of the recovered weapons showed signs of rust. The suspects, detained in Germany and the Netherlands, allegedly intended to transport the arms to Berlin for potential attacks on Jewish institutions across Europe.The individuals in custody include Palestinians Abdelhamid Al A. and Ibrahim El-R., both born in Lebanon, as well as Egyptian Mohamed B. and Dutch national Nazih R. Initial searches for the weapons took place in Germany in October, with investigators initially suspecting Poland as the hiding place. The suspects had reportedly traveled to Poland multiple times.Federal prosecutors stated that all four suspects have long-standing ties to Hamas, participating in its activities abroad and maintaining close connections with the organization's military leadership. They remain in custody pending further investigation.The discovery of the weapons cache comes amid heightened tensions following terrorist attacks by Hamas in Israel on October 7, followed by retaliatory strikes in the Gaza Strip. Groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda have increasingly called for attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets globally, underscoring the ongoing security challenges.Pictures of guns and magazines were found on the mobile phone of one of four people arrested in Berlin and Rotterdam in December on suspicion of links to Hamas. Digital data in the photos led investigators to southern Bulgaria. The Bulgarian police confiscated the arsenal, "Spiegel" points out. One of those detained before December, born in Lebanon, is said to have been ordered by Hamas's military wing to set up arms caches in Europe for attacks on Jews, mainly in Germany.Several of the suspects have traveled repeatedly to Poland, but the existence of a hiding place has not been established with certainty. German authorities were tipped off by Israeli intelligence."In the middle of March, contact was established between the German and Bulgarian services on this matter. Intensive work began. On March 28, this warehouse was discovered in Yambol region, which contained a remarkable military arsenal in a car repair shop warehouse. We're talking about a submachine gun, two rifles, 6 revolvers, 2 more pistols, one anti-tank projectile, many cartridges of different calibers, 20 detonator capsules, there was a detonating cord and metal boxes with gunpowder. The owner of these weapons, the Bulgarian services managed to detain him, he already is under remand - permanent detention ordered by the Yambol court. It is a question of quite intensive work and exchange of sensitive information between the Bulgarian and German services. They managed to locate the warehouse very quickly, given that the Bulgarian services only received a few photos from the place in question. A week later, this became clear that they managed to ensure that there would be no leakage of information in order not to fail the operation", commented BNT journalist Ivo Nikodimov.