German police: ISIS link possible in Cologne hostage incident

German police are investigating what may have been a foiled Islamic terror attack Monday by a refugee who allegedly claimed to belong to ISIS.

By World Israel News Staff and Associated Press

Cologne police are calling on witnesses to a bloody hostage-taking at the city’s train station to upload photos or videos to help their investigation.

“The investigation is considering all possibilities and we are not ruling out terrorism,” Cologne deputy police chief Miriam Brauns told a news conference, AFP reported.

Police have tweeted a link to an online platform for witnesses to upload images of Monday’s incident in which a man lit a gasoline bomb at a restaurant inside the station that injured a 14-year-old girl. He then held a woman hostage inside a pharmacy for two hours.

He “massively threatened” the hostage, police said, and at one point tried to set her on fire, according to NBC news.

The suspect was severely injured when police stormed the pharmacy and later received CPR. His condition Tuesday wasn’t immediately clear.  The woman was lightly injured.

Police said Monday that the suspect, 55, was likely a Syrian who came to Germany in 2016 and has a criminal record. He allegedly said during the incident that he was a member of the Islamic State terrorist organization.

GermanyIslamic terrorSyrian refugees