German security chief warns over October 7 'trigger point'

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, OCT 4 - Germany's domestic intelligence chief warned Friday that the anniversary of the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel could be a "trigger event" for unrest. Next Monday marks one year since the attack by the Palestinian Islamist militant group that sparked Israel's invasion of Gaza and conflict with Hamas allies in Lebanon, Iran and elsewhere.
    Middle East turmoil tends to spark reactions in Germany, warned Thomas Haldenwang, chief of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV). Anti-Semitism and hostility towards Israel are a "connecting element" between Islamists, pro-Palestinian extremists and other radical groups on the far right and far left, he said. "The anniversary could be a trigger event for large parts of the protest spectrum," he said, warning of a "great potential for emotionalisation, polarisation and radicalisation". Aside from official commemorations of the October 7 attack, a number of pro-Palestinian demonstrations are planned in Germany at the weekend and on Monday. (ANSA-AFP).