Explosive-laden drone found near Leipzig airport runway

Airport workers found a drone carrying explosives in a restricted cargo area near the southern runway of Leipzig/Halle airport overnight, Hindustan Times reported. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt called it a hybrid attack that opened a new level of danger, after an emergency meeting with security service chiefs. Parts of the airport closed and several flights, including DHL services, were diverted, officials said passengers and staff were never in danger, and most operations resumed after one runway reopened. Anti-extremism prosecutors and counterterrorism officers opened an investigation once the explosives were confirmed, and are separately examining minor damage found on a diverted cargo aircraft after it landed in Hanover. Federal police have said a separate series of unauthorised drone overflights at military and infrastructure sites could have been organised by Russian agents, and an Interior Ministry spokesperson said no connection could be determined at this stage between the incident and a series of incendiary devices concealed in parcels that caught fire in 2024.