A 37-year-old foreign national of Palestinian origin was arrested in Agios Nikolaos in Crete on Saturday. The man has reportedly confessed to have been trained by terror-organization Hamas. He was arrested during a joint operation conducted by the National Intelligence Service (EYP) and the Directorate for the Investigation of Special Violent Crimes.
The suspect is accused of membership in the terrorist organization Hamas, as well as of receiving terrorist training, undertaking travel for terrorism-related purposes, and planning terrorist acts.
According to the information currently available to the authorities, the 37-year-old is alleged to have links with individuals who were recently arrested in Cyprus in connection with terrorism-related investigations.
According to a statement issued by the Greek Police, searches carried out at residences in Crete and and in an apartment the man was renting in Patisia district of downtown Athens.
Searches resulted in the discovery and seizure of, among other items, mobile communication devices, a laptop computer, data storage media, bank cards and laboratory equipment.
According to media, the man was living in Crete for the last two years and was working as electrician in a hotel.
He had admitted to have received attacks training in a Hamas training camp in Malaysia, SE Asia, and he had ordered solvents and other chemical substances explosives via the internet, Alpha TV reported early on Sunday evening.
Authorities suspect that he was planning to target Israeli interests such as restaurants, hotels, synagogues in Greece and Cyprus.
The suspect is expected to be brought before the competent public prosecutor, while investigations remain ongoing as authorities continue their efforts to fully examine the circumstances of the case and determine its broader dimensions.
German national arrested in Crete
Meanwhile also on Saturday, authorities in Chania arrested a 56-year-old German national suspected of espionage because he was in possession of a professional camera with which he had taken pictures of military facilities, military aircraft and targets from the Chania airport, local media reported. He was taken to prosecutor on Sunday morning.
