Iconic Cologne Cathedral closed to tourists as terror threat looms

Admin I Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023

 

COLOGNE – The iconic cathedral in the western German city of Cologne is set to remain closed to tourists for the time being following warnings of a possible terrorist attack.

“All liturgical services will take place, unfortunately tourist visits are not possible,” the cathedral’s head of security, Oliver Gassen, told dpa on Tuesday. Between services, the building would be closed, he added.

Cologne’s Cathedral, a major tourist draw located right next to the city’s central train station, is usually visited by more than 100,000 people between Christmas and New Year.

Unfortunately, that will not be the case this year, Gassen said.

Meanwhile the terror alert seemed not to have deterred churchgoers, said Cathedral Provost Guido Assmann, who presides over the cathedral chapter – the cathedral’s governing body. “The faithful came – Christmas mass was busier than last year,” he said.

Intelligence had come in saying that Cologne Cathedral and a church in Vienna could be the target of attacks by an Islamist group. According to police in Cologne, the information referred to New Year’s Eve.

Careful checks of people entering Cologne Cathedral ahead of the traditional Christmas Eve service were without incident, a police spokeswoman said on Monday. The surroundings of the cathedral, where police had increased their presence, had also remained quiet, she said.

Police in Vienna also took additional security measures and Christmas Eve masses went ahead as planned and without incident.

Four people were detained in the Austrian capital. Two men and a woman are being held in pre-trial custody in connection with an investigation into an Islamist network, the Austrian Press Agency (APA) reported.