German military base investigates attempted water contamination

[KARAH RUCKER]

GERMAN AUTHORITIES ARE INVESTIGATING POSSIBLE SABOTAGE AT A MILITARY BASE AFTER IT APPEARED ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO CONTAMINATE DRINKING WATER. THE SUSPECTED INCIDENT OCCURRED AT THE BUNDESWEHR BASE AT COLOGNE-WAHN.EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING, A GUARD AT THE BASE NOTICED A HOLE IN THE FENCE NEAR THE WATER PROCESSING PLANT. THIS PROMPTED A SEARCH, BUT NO TRESPASSERS WERE FOUND. AS A PRECAUTION, SOLDIERS AND CIVILIANS AT THE BASE WERE TOLD NOT TO DRINK THE TAP WATER, AND THE WATER SUPPLY WAS SWITCHED TO CANISTERS WHILE TESTS ARE CONDUCTED. THE BASE, WHICH HOUSES 4,300 SOLDIERS AND 1,200 CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES, IS ALSO HOME TO THE FLEET OF MILITARY AIRCRAFT USED BY GERMAN CHANCELLOR OLAF SCHOLZ AND HIS MINISTERS. THE BASE WAS REOPENED LATER WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.IN RESPONSE TO THE SUSPECTED SABOTAGE, SECURITY LEVELS WERE RAISED AT A NEARBY NATO BASE WHICH IS HOME TO SURVEILLANCE PLANES. HOWEVER, THE WATER THERE WAS DEEMED SAFE, AND THE BASE REMAINED ACCESSIBLE.WHILE THE INVESTIGATION CONTINUES, NO DIRECT EVIDENCE HAS SURFACED LINKING THE SUSPECTED SABOTAGE TO ANY SPECIFIC GROUP. HOWEVER, NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL RECENTLY WARNED ABOUT INCREASING RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING ACTS OF SABOTAGE AND CYBERATTACKS, TARGETING MEMBER STATES. SEVERAL COUNTRIES, INCLUDING POLAND, GERMANY, THE UK, AND THE CZECH REPUBLIC, HAVE REPORTED SIMILAR INCIDENTS IN RECENT MONTHS.FOR MORE OF OUR UNBIASED — STRAIGHT FACT REPORTING — DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP OR VISIT US AT SAN – DOT – COM.