By CIARAN FAHEY
HANNOVER, Germany (AP) — The friendly soccer game between Germany and the Netherlands was canceled 90 minutes before kickoff on Tuesday due to the threat of a bomb at the stadium.
“We had concrete evidence that someone wanted to set off an explosive device in the stadium,” Hannover police chief Volker Kluwe told German TV.
Referring to another bomb threat about an hour beforehand that turned out to be a false alarm, Kluwe said, “After the first object turned out to be harmless, we got a tip that had to be taken seriously that an attack was being planned.”
Members of the German government including Chancellor Angela Merkel were not at the stadium, but had arrived in Hannover to attend the match to send a signal that Germany wouldn’t bow to terrorism in the wake of the deadly Paris attacks on Friday.
At that time, Germany was playing France in a soccer friendly in the Stade de France, outside of which three suicide bombers blew themselves up, killing one bystander. The bombers sought unsuccessfully to enter the stadium. At least 129 people were killed in the coordinated attacks in the French capital.
Federal Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere took responsibility for calling off Tuesday’s game. He said indications of a planned attack became stronger as the match approached, and the decision was made shortly after Merkel and her ministers landed. She flew back to Berlin.
https://news.yahoo.com/police-seal-german-stadium-because-suspicious-suitcase-173737310.html
