Failed Leipzig drone attack linked to arrests in Serbia – media

According to Spiegel, one of the suspects identified so far in the attempted drone attack on a Ukrainian cargo aircraft at Leipzig airport has been linked to another man arrested in Serbia in June for possessing explosives. German security sources said Serbian police stopped two vehicles near the Serbian-Hungarian border on 11 June carrying Danilo B., a Serbian and Russian dual national, and Serbian citizen Slobodan D.

The first vehicle contained components of a modified drone and control systems, while the second had cans filled with explosives concealed in a special compartment. The two suspects were reportedly travelling towards Hungary and the EU.

Both men have been in pre-trial detention since June. German authorities are investigating possible links with the Leipzig suspects, a Belarusian citizen and a Lithuanian-Russian dual national. Spiegel also reported that one of the Leipzig suspects had travelled to Russia via Serbia and Istanbul.

Serbia is described as a "hotspot" for Russian sabotage operations in Europe and for recruiting and training personnel for Russian intelligence services, according to European intelligence assessments.

The German government earlier this week explicitly identified Russia as being behind the failed attempt in early August to attack a Ukrainian cargo aircraft carrying ammunition at Leipzig/Halle airport. Germany responded by closing the Russian consulate in Bonn and the so-called Russian House, a former Soviet cultural centre in Berlin.

The Kremlin, which denies any involvement in the Leipzig case, subsequently closed the Goethe-Institut in Moscow and Germany's consulate in St Petersburg.