German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that individuals and groups behind hybrid attacks will pay for them,
following the discovery of a third drone and suspected explosives linked to an earlier incident at Leipzig/Halle airport. Speaking at a coalition summit and ahead of a cabinet retreat in Brandenburg, Merz stated that Germany has increasingly found itself in the crosshairs of hybrid attackers
and noted that perpetrators are prepared to accept severe property damage, injuries, and fatalities without scruple.
German Chancellor Warns Hybrid Attackers After Third Drone Discovery
The government intends to “shortly” set out who is believed to be responsible, with Merz adding that authorities are working closely with security services to establish accountability. While security sources cited by local media suspect the involvement of Russian intelligence, Berlin has not made direct accusations, and Moscow has denied involvement. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt previously pointed to suspicions involving a foreign power.
Investigation Details and the Third Drone Discovery
The ongoing probe follows an initial incident on August 4, when police deployed a bomb disposal robot after an explosives-laden drone was found on the tarmac near a Ukrainian cargo plane. That event forced the temporary shutdown of the airport, the diversion of multiple flights, and an in-flight collision between an aircraft that had aborted its landing and an unknown object nearby.
Public broadcasters NDR and WDR alongside the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported that investigators discovered a third drone to the west of the airport on August 14—ten days after the initial attack attempt. Local media reported that approximately 50 grams of a substance suspected to be the military explosive hexogen were found alongside the drone. The office of the prosecutor general declined to comment on the report, while Saxony’s chief public prosecutor, Wolfgang Schwürzer, emphasized that all potential criminal backgrounds, including extremist or terrorist motives, are being examined with high priority.
Strategic Importance of Leipzig/Halle Airport
Leipzig/Halle airport serves as a critical cargo and military logistics hub utilized by NATO and Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines for military supplies. Video footage from the initial August 4 response showed a bomb disposal robot operating near an Antonov aircraft painted in Ukrainian colors with the phrase Be Brave Like Kherson
inscribed on the side.
Officials emphasized that the operation required high professional preparation, technical expertise, and experience in handling explosives rather than amateur execution. Saxony’s Interior Minister Armin Schuster noted that the equipment used was not simply purchased from a hardware store.
Government Countermeasures and National Security Context
In response to rising security concerns, Chancellor Merz highlighted that the government is strengthening defensive measures, including the establishment of a Joint Drone Defence Center within the Federal Police in Magdeburg. Authorities are also pursuing plans to empower security services to retaliate against domestic and foreign actors, including through server-hacking capabilities.
The incident compounds broader concerns over European transport security. German security services previously investigated a July 2024 incident in which a parcel burst into flames on the ground at the Leipzig DHL cargo facility before it could be loaded onto an aircraft.
