Following the cancellation of the international match between Germany and Holland in Hanover last night as a result of what police chief Volker Kluwe described as a "definite danger to all of Hanover" and a "planned bomb attack" in the HDI Arena, federal interior minister Thomas de Mazière, interior minister for Lower Saxony Boris Pistorius and DFB vice-president Dr. Reinhard Rauball gave a press conference regarding the current situation in Hanover last night. DFB.de has put together the most important quotes.
Thomas de Mazière on…
…the cancellation of the match: The situation is severe and there is a great danger to Germany and Europe at present. Our security services always act on hints of potential attacks, and after the events in Paris, there are more suggestions both at home and from abroad. One of the hardest tasks for the security services is to assess the sincerity of such leads. Every hint has been and is being carefully and rigorously examined. Evidence emerged in the early evening of a threat to the international fixture against Holland, and as such, I conferred with the federal security services, coming to the conclusion that the game should be cancelled in order to ensure the safety of everyone involved. It was not a decision I took lightly. Please understand that I cannot comment further on the source or the extent of the threat at this stage. We were all looking forward to the game, as it was a gesture from the country and the football team following the events in Paris. The decision to call off the game was therefore all the more difficult for us to make, but in such a situation, the safety and protection of the people takes priority.
…the timing of the decision: I flew to Hanover with the chancellor, and the decision was made during the course of the flight and just after we landed. The first person I spoke to was Mr Pistorius, the second was Mr Rauball. The chancellor flew straight back.
…the current threat level: I understand that there are questions regarding the specific grounds for the decision, but I cannot respond at this moment as it would make our work harder in the future. I simply ask that the German population has faith in me, the interior minister, and the security services.
Dr. Reinhard Raub on…
…the cancellation of the game: It's a sad day for Germany and a sad day for German football. It's a shame for all the football fans who were looking forward to a great game. The game was supposed to serve as a sign of solidarity. I wouldn't have been able to imagine before that our team would have to experience such tragic events twice in the space of four days. I have a great deal of respect for today's decision, which was so hard to make. I'm grateful to everyone concerned.
…the situation with the DFB team: I'm in constant contact with the team, with Jogi Löw and with Oliver Bierhoff. The team bus was on the way to the stadium and turned round about five kilometres away. The players from Munich have already flown home; the other players left with family and friends. The Dutch team have also travelled back and are safe.
…the potential consequences for football: I get the impression that today's events were a turning point for football in Germany. At the end of March 2016 we have two international matches against England and Italy. We'll assess with the security services in the new year what needs to be taken into account. At present, we expect to go ahead with the next matches.
Boris Pistorius on…
…the cancellation of the game: It is with great regret and great sadness that this game had to be called off, but in light of the information we received, it would have been irresponsible to go ahead with the game. There was no place for misinformation or different interpretations. I'd like to thank everyone involved for their quick and smooth cooperation. We'll have a strong police presence in the city overnight and we want to show that we are ensuring the safety of our people.
…the official police investigations: There haven't been any arrests yet, and at this stage there have been no explosives found. The investigations are ongoing.
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Following the cancellation of the international match between Germany and Holland in Hanover last night as a result of what police chief Volker Kluwe described as a "definite danger to all of Hanover" and a "planned bomb attack" in the HDI Arena, federal interior minister Thomas de Mazière, interior minister for Lower Saxony Boris Pistorius and DFB vice-president Dr. Reinhard Rauball gave a press conference regarding the current situation in Hanover last night. DFB.de has put together the most important quotes.
Thomas de Mazière on…
…the cancellation of the match: The situation is severe and there is a great danger to Germany and Europe at present. Our security services always act on hints of potential attacks, and after the events in Paris, there are more suggestions both at home and from abroad. One of the hardest tasks for the security services is to assess the sincerity of such leads. Every hint has been and is being carefully and rigorously examined. Evidence emerged in the early evening of a threat to the international fixture against Holland, and as such, I conferred with the federal security services, coming to the conclusion that the game should be cancelled in order to ensure the safety of everyone involved. It was not a decision I took lightly. Please understand that I cannot comment further on the source or the extent of the threat at this stage. We were all looking forward to the game, as it was a gesture from the country and the football team following the events in Paris. The decision to call off the game was therefore all the more difficult for us to make, but in such a situation, the safety and protection of the people takes priority.
…the timing of the decision: I flew to Hanover with the chancellor, and the decision was made during the course of the flight and just after we landed. The first person I spoke to was Mr Pistorius, the second was Mr Rauball. The chancellor flew straight back.
…the current threat level: I understand that there are questions regarding the specific grounds for the decision, but I cannot respond at this moment as it would make our work harder in the future. I simply ask that the German population has faith in me, the interior minister, and the security services.
Dr. Reinhard Raub on…
…the cancellation of the game: It's a sad day for Germany and a sad day for German football. It's a shame for all the football fans who were looking forward to a great game. The game was supposed to serve as a sign of solidarity. I wouldn't have been able to imagine before that our team would have to experience such tragic events twice in the space of four days. I have a great deal of respect for today's decision, which was so hard to make. I'm grateful to everyone concerned.
…the situation with the DFB team: I'm in constant contact with the team, with Jogi Löw and with Oliver Bierhoff. The team bus was on the way to the stadium and turned round about five kilometres away. The players from Munich have already flown home; the other players left with family and friends. The Dutch team have also travelled back and are safe.
…the potential consequences for football: I get the impression that today's events were a turning point for football in Germany. At the end of March 2016 we have two international matches against England and Italy. We'll assess with the security services in the new year what needs to be taken into account. At present, we expect to go ahead with the next matches.
Boris Pistorius on…
…the cancellation of the game: It is with great regret and great sadness that this game had to be called off, but in light of the information we received, it would have been irresponsible to go ahead with the game. There was no place for misinformation or different interpretations. I'd like to thank everyone involved for their quick and smooth cooperation. We'll have a strong police presence in the city overnight and we want to show that we are ensuring the safety of our people.
…the official police investigations: There haven't been any arrests yet, and at this stage there have been no explosives found. The investigations are ongoing.
