Danish Police arrest five Islamists for foiled terror plot role

Copenhagen (Denmark), Dec. 30 (ANI): Police in Denmark have arrested five suspected Islamist militants for planning to attack a newspaper that printed cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in 2005.

The suspects were picked up for questioning from a building in Herlev, and according to preliminary revelations, they were planning to enter a Copenhagen office block housing several newspapers, including offices of the daily Jyllands-Posten to "kill as many as possible of those around".

Police confirmed that they had seized a machine gun with a silencer, ammunition and plastic strips that could be used as handcuffs.

"The detainees were preparing a terror attack against a newspaper, which according to the PET's information was Jyllands-Posten," The Telegraph quoted Denmark's PET security police, as saying in a statement.

"The attack was due to be carried out in the coming days," the police added.

Jyllands-Posten was the newspaper that first published the cartoons, provoking protests against Danish and European interests in the Middle East, Africa and Asia in which at least 50 people died.

Danish Justice Minister Lars Barfoed said those detained had a "militant Islamic background" and called the plan the most serious such attempt in Denmark so far. (ANI)