Espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, and covert operations are a \u2018constant reality\u2019, says Germany\u2019s interior minister.<\/p>\n
Published On 9 Aug 20269 Aug 2026<\/p>\n
Germany is facing daily \u201chybrid warfare\u201d attacks from abroad, an official has said, days after an explosive-laden drone was discovered at Leipzig\/Halle Airport.<\/p>\n
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told the local newspaper Bild am Sonntag on Sunday that foreign powers wanted to subdue Germany politically and socially by stirring up fear.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWe\u2019re not at war, but we are the daily target of hybrid warfare,\u201d Dobrindt said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEspionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, or covert operations by foreign powers aimed at destabilising Germany or inflicting direct harm are a constant reality.\u201d<\/p>\n
He did not identify any countries behind the alleged attacks.<\/p>\n
The minister\u2019s comments come after a drone loaded \u200cwith explosives was discovered at the Leipzig\/Halle Airport<\/a> in eastern Germany on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Some German lawmakers pointed the finger at Russia, which has been at war with Ukraine since its full-scale invasion of the country in 2022.<\/p>\n The Russian embassy in Berlin on Friday dismissed the Leipzig event as a \u201cfabricated provocation\u201d, saying it was another example of unsubstantiated accusations against Moscow.<\/p>\n Germany plans to boost anti-drone capacity<\/p>\n Germany is planning to strengthen its ability to counter drones amid concerns over the threat, Bild reported, citing government sources.<\/p>\n The newspaper said Dobrindt\u2019s ministry wanted to double the federal government\u2019s team of anti-drone experts from 150 to 300 and increase its network of related bases from four to eight.<\/p>\n Germany\u2019s armed forces said on Saturday that two drones were spotted late on Thursday over a German military base site in Mechernich, in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia.<\/p>\n