Unknown perpetrators have claimed responsibility for attacks on the railway in Berlin and Bremen, causing significant disruptions to both local and long-distance train services. The police are currently investigating the authenticity of the online claim.
Cable ducts burned
After fires in cable ducts along railway tracks in Berlin and Bremen, a claim of responsibility has emerged. It was published on an internet platform and is being verified for authenticity by the state security of the Bremen police, according to their statement. The fires led to severe disruptions in both local and long-distance train services, affecting thousands of passengers.
Claim published on Indymedia
The claim was posted on the left-wing platform Indymedia. “The outages caused by these attacks will hopefully create effective interruptions in the capitalist routine,” it states. The statement claims that Deutsche Bahn, more than any other company, forms the backbone of the German economy and provides the fuel that drives it. In Bremen, the perpetrators used an incendiary device to deliberately ignite the cables in a duct along a railway embankment early Monday morning, as reported by the police. The criminal police have begun their investigations, securing traces and evidence. State security is examining a politically motivated background.
Several ICE trains cancelled
Due to the damage, no ICE trains could initially run between North Rhine-Westphalia and Hamburg via Bremen Central Station on Monday. Regional trains on the Hamburg-Bremen route were also affected. In the early hours of Friday, a fire broke out in a railway cable duct in Berlin, causing significant disruptions to long-distance, regional, and S-Bahn services since then. According to Deutsche Bahn, these disruptions are expected to continue until Tuesday. “Because multiple cables are affected, repair work will continue over the weekend,” it stated. The railway described the incidents as “vandalism damage.”
Disruptions in Berlin
The section between Berlin Central Station and Berlin-Spandau is particularly affected. As a result, the stop in Berlin-Spandau is cancelled. Long-distance trains are being rerouted via the northern outer ring to Berlin-Gesundbrunnen and the main station, resulting in longer travel times. Regional trains are also being rerouted, experiencing delays, or skipping stops.
