Arya News - Germany`s acting Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and her Austrian counterpart, Gerhard Karner, have called off a planned trip to Syria following security warnings of a potential terrorist attack. The trip was set for Thursday, with an air force plane scheduled to fly Faeser and her delegation from Jordan to Damascus.
Germany"s acting Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and her Austrian counterpart, Gerhard Karner, have called off a planned trip to Syria following security warnings of a potential terrorist attack.
The trip was set for Thursday, with an air force plane scheduled to fly Faeser and her delegation from Jordan to Damascus.
"Due to a very urgent threat of terrorism, we weighed up carefully what it means for the safety of those accompanying us and have come to the conclusion that it would be better to cancel the trip," Faeser said in Amman.
The cancellation came after German authorities issued specific warnings, a spokesman for the German Interior Ministry said.
"This incident also shows that the security situation in Syria remains fragile," the spokesman said.
Instead of heading to Syria, Faeser"s delegation then set off from Amman to visit a refugee camp for Syrians who had fled the years of fighting in the country.
The two ministers had been due to meet two members of Syria"s transitional government and representatives from United Nations aid organizations.
The talks, which were to focus on security issues and the prospects for Syrian refugees" return, were to be held under high security and had not been publicly announced.
"Germany and Austria are working hard to ensure that serious offenders and persons posing a danger who are Syrian nationals can be returned to Syria as quickly as possible," the ministry spokesman said, adding that these matters were to be discussed with the transitional government in Damascus at the earliest opportunity.