Police find third drone, explosives after failed German airport attack

BERLIN: German authorities uncovered a third drone and potentially explosive material connected to a recent attack attempt on Leipzig/Halle airport, according to reports on Tuesday. The drone was discovered on August 14, ten days following the incident, situated west of the airport. Detectives also found approximately 50 grams (1.8 ounces) of a substance they suspect to be the military explosive hexogen, according to broadcaster NDR, WDR, and the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

The office of the prosecutor general has yet to provide a response to a Reuters inquiry. Security sources quoted in the accounts point to Russian intelligence involvement in the attempted assault, a claim Russia has firmly rejected. On August 4, an explosives-laden drone was found near a Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft transporting military supplies.

Authorities also suspect that a second drone may have collided with a DHL cargo plane shortly after the airport's temporary closure. The airport serves as a critical cargo and military logistics hub, utilized by NATO and Ukraine's Antonov Airlines for military provisions.