Berlin, Feb 25 (AP) A trial began Tuesday in Germany for four alleged Hamas members suspected of organizing weapons caches across Europe.

They are accused of seeking out and setting up weapons depots for the militant group across Europe so militants could later use the firearms and ammunition for attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets on the continent, prosecutors said when filing charges last year.

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The weapons were allegedly moved around Europe in preparation for Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel, prosecutors said. Around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in that attack, and about 250 taken hostage.

The attack triggered Israel's air and ground offensive in Gaza, which has killed more than 48,200 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. The ministry says more than half the dead have been women and children.

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Hamas also considered targeting the Israeli embassy in Berlin, the area around Tempelhof Airport in the capital and the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany, authorities said.

Abdelhamid Al A., Mohamed B., Nazih R. and Ibrahim El-R. were arrested in December 2023. Prosecutors identified them only by their first name and last initial in line with German privacy laws.

All four had important positions within Hamas, prosecutors asserted.

The men allegedly set up a weapons cache in Bulgaria in 2019 and in Denmark later that year. They sought to find a spot in Poland but were unsuccessful, prosecutors said. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)