A Berlin court has ordered the arrest of five Iraqis who took their country's top diplomats in Germany captive for five hours, judicial authorities said Thursday.
The five men, aged between 32 and 43, will face a prison sentence of between five and 15 years if convicted of hostage-taking at the Iraqi Embassy, Berlin justice ministry spokeswoman Ariane Faust said, according to AP.
The men also are accused of causing bodily harm, attacking representatives of a foreign state and breaching the peace.
German commandos stormed the embassy in a western Berlin suburb after a five-hour standoff Tuesday, freeing Iraq's acting ambassador, Shamil Mohammed, and his designated successor, Muaead Hussain.
The two men had been bound with tape and held at gunpoint by the assailants, who were armed with a loaded pistol, two tear gas guns, a hatchet and a stun gun.
A statement from the Berlin justice ministry said that "the detainees have yet to talk about the issue — the background and motives are still being investigated." The five suspects had been living at a hostel for asylum-seekers in the state of Brandenburg, which surrounds Berlin. Four of them applied for asylum in March, and one last year. (Albawaba.com)
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