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London Police Officer (2015): Working against terrorism
Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
London police arrested a 13-year-old boy during an anti-terrorist operation.
According to the investigators, he is suspected of having distributed terrorist and extremely Islamist material on the Internet.
The teenager was released on bail, according to the information.
"While it is still very rare for a young person to be arrested for a terrorist offence, we have recently seen a worrying rise in the number of teenagers being implicated in terrorism," said the London Police Chief Counter Terrorism, Richard Smith.
"This particular investigation is ongoing, but we are working closely with a range of partners to protect young, vulnerable people and deter extremism and terrorism."
Police have also warned in the past that young people, mainly boys in their early teens, may be becoming radicalized online and planning terrorist attacks.
Radicalized young people in Germany
In Germany, too, cases are known in which teenagers are said to have become radicalized and planned attacks.
A 17-year-old Syrian is on trial in Hagen for allegedly planning an attack on a synagogue.
Apparently he wanted to use a bomb for that.
A 16-year-old German was also recently arrested for allegedly planning a terrorist attack in Essen.
According to SPIEGEL information, the teenager listed the Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik as a role model in a manifesto.
He quoted Adolf Hitler and wrote that he felt compelled to set an example "because of the decline of the white race."
The Attorney General is now investigating the case.
ptz/Reuters