12 men have been charged by German prosecutors with plotting armed attacks on mosques in which they planned to kill or injure as many Muslims as possible.

In a statement, prosecutors said: “They aimed through attacks on mosques and the killing and wounding of as many Muslims as possible to create civil war-like conditions”. Prosecutors said the suspects, 11 gang members and one accomplice, had met regularly to plan. All, with the exception of one, had pledged thousands towards 50 000 Euro, 0r 59 000 Dollars, for the purchase of weapons. According to Arab News an official said cash sums in the “mid four-digit range” had been found in suspects’ houses.

Arab News reports that the suspects, all German, are aged between 31 and 61. Only one, of the group, is not in custody, and is reportedly still at large. One other suspect had died while in custody.

There has reportedly been a spate of right-wing attacks directed at minorities in Germany in recent years.

Umm Muhammed Umar