Drone with explosives found at German airport, official sees 'new quality' of threat

A drone with explosives was found at Germany's Leipzig/Halle Airport and the device was defused, authorities said Wednesday, in an incident that the country's top security official said posed a 'new quality of danger.'

Dobrindt: "is a new quality of danger"

Dobrindt: "Drone sightings, drone threats including in a hybrid context, are something we know from the past"

Dobrindt: "That a drone armed with explosives is at an airport is a new threat scenario."

Dobrindt: "a hybrid attack scenario"

"Western officials have accused Russia and its proxies of staging dozens of attacks and other incidents across Europe since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than four years ago."

Both runways at the freight hub were closed and several flights, including one passenger plane, were diverted after a flying object was sighted shortly before midnight Tuesday. An anti-explosives robot was deployed near the south runway.

Saxony state interior minister Armin Schuster said authorities were looking for parts of a possible second drone. An apparent second flying object collided with a freight airplane after it aborted a landing; the plane flew to Hannover, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) to the northwest, where officials found slight damage.

NATO said it was aware of the incident but referred queries to German authorities.

Dobrindt described it as "a hybrid attack scenario" but "didn't offer more details of authorities' assessment or specify who might be responsible."