The Wall Street Journal and CNN report that U.S. intelligence believes a Russian intelligence agency was involved in planting an explosive-laden drone on the tarmac of Leipzig/Halle Airport on August 4. The drone was discovered near a Ukrainian cargo plane, and the explosive charge did not detonate due to a technical malfunction, according to investigators.
U.S. intelligence now believes a Russian intelligence agency was responsible for the explosive-laden drone discovered on the tarmac of Leipzig/Halle Airport on August 4, the Wall Street Journal and CNN report, citing U.S. officials and a Pentagon source in Europe. The assessment marks a more specific attribution than earlier reports, which had indicated Russian involvement without naming a particular agency.
The drone was found in the late evening hours of August 4 near a Ukrainian An-124 cargo plane, one of several Ukrainian aircraft parked at the airport, which serves as a major NATO logistics hub for supplies to Ukraine. Investigators said the explosive charge attached to the drone did not detonate due to a technical malfunction. The discovery prompted a night-long shutdown of the airport and was described by German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt as a 'hybrid attack scenario.'
As The Zioneer reported on August 7, U.S. intelligence had previously linked Russia to the incident. The new report adds the suspicion of a specific Russian intelligence agency, though the agency's name has not been disclosed. The Zioneer has also previously reported on other drone incidents near NATO infrastructure, including a drone downed near a U.S. air base in Iraq in July and a drone that drifted into Romanian waters in June.
2 developments
- DevelopingAriel Kahana Assesses Explosive Drone Threat as Global, Points to Israeli Measures
- DevelopingGerman Army reveals two suspicious drones near Bonn military base
- DevelopingDrone disrupts operations at Hanover Airport, a week after Leipzig explosives find
- StrongGerman interior minister calls Leipzig explosive drone discovery a 'hybrid attack scenario'
Source and signal
- Open-source intake