{
  "id": 3334034,
  "title": "Third drone found near Leipzig airport with traces of explosives, raising suspicion of Russian involvement",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/25/third-drone-found-near-leipzig-airport-with-traces-of-explosives",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-25T19:15:26.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Insider",
    "slug": "the-insider",
    "url": "https://theins.press/en/news/296429"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A third drone, potentially connected to a potential attack on Leipzig airport, was discovered in a field near the airport on August 14. Law enforcement sources reported the incident to local news outlets NDR, WDR, and Süddeutsche Zeitung. Forensic experts from the Federal Criminal Police Office found around 50 grams of an unidentified substance at the site, which was preliminarily identified as RDX, a potent military-grade explosive. The sabotage attempt may have been more extensive than initially suspected.\n\nThe first drone with explosives and a detonator was found on the airport grounds on the evening of August 4, but it failed to detonate due to a technical failure. The target was suspected to be a Ukrainian Antonov cargo plane transporting weapons. About 20 minutes after the first drone was found, a DHL cargo plane may have collided with a second drone. The pilot of the DHL plane aborted the landing after spotting an object approximately 30 centimeters in size and diverted to Hanover. There, investigators found damage to the tail section, ruling out a bird strike. An antenna and electronic equipment attached to a tree, believed to have controlled one of the drones, were found in Kursdorf, north of the airport. Charred earth and metal fragments were discovered nearby, with witnesses reporting an explosion hours before the airport incident began.\n\nGermany's Federal Prosecutor’s Office is leading the investigation, treating it as an attempted attack on the country's transportation and logistics infrastructure. The office has not named any suspects, but sources suggest Russian intelligence services could be involved. While German authorities have not officially accused Russia, the Russian Embassy in Berlin called the incident a \"fabricated provocation\" and denied any involvement. Chancellor Friedrich Merz promised to name the responsible parties soon. Russian media previously accused Germany of stoking \"anti-Russian hysteria,\" and Moscow denies any involvement in sabotage or hybrid operations within Germany.",
  "summary": "A third drone, presumably linked to an attempted attack on the local airport, has been found in the German city of Leipzig. The drone was found on the evening of Aug. 14 in a field in the municipality of Kabelsketal, which borders the western part of the airport. German outlets NDR , WDR , and Süddeutsche Zeitung all reported on the incident, citing sources in law enforcement. The Federal…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}