Police in Essen, in western Germany, announced on Tuesday that they had arrested a man after receiving “tips about a possible attack scenario”, according to AFP.

Whether the man, “known to the police,” planned the attack is “under investigation,” police said in a brief statement without identifying him.

He was arrested at his home in Duisburg, which was searched by police.

According to several media outlets, it is about 29-year-old jihadist Tariq S., who was allegedly preparing an attack on a pro-Israel demonstration.

When asked by AFP, a police spokeswoman declined to comment at this stage on whether the attack was planned or the identity of the person involved.

The weekly Der Spiegel and the popular Bild newspaper said police had received information from foreign intelligence that the man had searched the Internet for pro-Israel gatherings and viewed jihadist content.

According to Der Spiegel, citing sources close to the authorities, this raised fears that he was planning a booby-trap attack, although it is not clear whether he already had a specific demonstration in mind.

In any event, the warning was deemed quite serious and Tariq S. was arrested under the Harm Prevention Act.

This German-Egyptian came to Syria via Turkey in late 2013, where he joined the Islamic State (IS). His fighting name is “Osama Al Almani”, Osama the German, according to Der Spiegel.

After returning to Germany in 2016, he was arrested at Frankfurt airport, and in 2017, a juvenile court sentenced him to five years in prison for belonging to a terrorist group.

Hundreds of pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian demonstrations have taken place in Germany since October 7, when Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, which was followed by massive bombing of the Gaza Strip.

Several pro-Palestinian demonstrations turned into clashes with the police, particularly in Berlin. In the capital, a synagogue was also fired with Molotov cocktails, there was no damage or injuries.

Thousands of people rallied in Berlin on Sunday in solidarity with Israel and against anti-Semitism, as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to fight a resurgence of anti-Jewish rhetoric in the country.