Tunisia arrested the nephew of the suspected Berlin truck attacker and two other jihadist suspects who are “connected” to the Tunisian assailant Anis Amri, the interior ministry said on Saturday.
A statement said the three suspects, aged between 18 and 27, were arrested yesterday and were members of a “terrorist cell... Connected to the terrorist Anis Amri”.
It made no direct link between the suspects and Monday’s deadly attack on a Berlin Christmas market.
The interior ministry said that Amri had sent money to his nephew and encouraged him to pledge allegiance to the Islamic State group.
“One of the members of the cell is the son of the sister of the terrorist (Amri) and during the investigation he admitted that he was in contact with his uncle through (the messaging service) Telegram,” it said. Amri allegedly urged his nephew to adopt jihadist “takfiri” ideology “and asked him to pledge allegiance to Daesh (IS),” it said.
The nephew also told investigators that Amri “sent him money through the post... So that he could join him in Germany,” the statement added.