NATO airbase raises security level due to 'potential threat'

A NATO airbase in Germany has raised its security level due to “a potential threat”.

All non-mission essential staff have been sent home from the base in Geilenkirchen in the west of the country, according to a spokesperson.

“The safety of our staff is our top priority,” they said in a post on X. “Operations continue as planned.”

The threat level has been raised to Charlie, the second highest of four alert levels.

It means “an incident has occurred or intelligence has been received indicating that some form of terrorist action against NATO organisations or personnel is highly likely,” according to Reuters.

The base, which houses NATO’s fleet of Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) surveillance planes, “is open to continue critical operations, that includes our scheduled flights,” a NATO spokesperson confirmed to Sky News.

German news agency DPA said a reporter saw police cars in the grounds of the airbase but police have not released any further information.

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This is the second time in just over a week that security has been raised.

Last Wednesday, a full sweep of the base was carried out following reports of attempted trespassing.

On the same day, a nearby German military base in Cologne was sealed off over fears someone had attempted to sabotage the water supply.

Both bases later issued the all-clear and today, a spokesperson said the current alert is unconnected.

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NATO has previously said it has “deep concerns” about evidence of Russian hybrid attacks on Germany and other European countries including sabotage, cyber-attacks, acts of violence and disinformation campaigns.

“We condemn Russia’s behaviour, and we call on Russia to uphold its international obligations, as Allies do theirs. Russia’s actions will not deter Allies from continuing to support Ukraine,” it said in a statement in May.

There has been no confirmation of what has triggered the current raising of security at the Geilenkirchen base or if any foreign interference is suspected.

However, a number of suspicious incidents have recently sparked an investigation in Germany.

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Last week, people in the west German city of Mechernich were told to boil their water or drink bottled supplies after a hole was found in a fence around a water facility.

Some 10,000 residents were put on high alert as officials investigated potential tampering at a water tank which also supplied the German military.

The district health office announced: “Due to unauthorized access to the drinking water system in the city of Mechernich, the drinking water could have been contaminated with a health risk.”

They later confirmed preliminary results of tests on the water supplies largely ruled out the presence of foreign chemicals or biological substances.

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On Thursday, prosecutors in Flensburg, in Germany’s far north, said they were investigating suspicions of espionage for the purpose of sabotage, without elaborating on who might be behind it.

German media reported drones had been spotted over a chemical park in Brunsbuettel, on the North Sea coast.

Bernd Winterfeld, spokesperson for the public prosecutor in Flensburg, told Sky News the office had “confirm[ed] the initiation of preliminary proceedings on suspicion activity for sabotage purposes in connection with repeated drone flights over critical infrastructure in Schleswig-Holstein”.

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