German police tighten security at Cologne cathedral amid threat of attack

Berlin [Germany], December 24 : German Police carried out searches at a cathedral in the western city of Cologne amid warnings of a possible attack on New Year's Eve, Al Jazeera reported.
Cologne police chief Michael Esser on Saturday said the Cologne cathedral would be closed and sniffer dogs would be brought in to search the building after the evening mass service.
"Even though the information relates to New Year's Eve, we are from this evening doing everything we can to ensure the safety of visitors of the cathedral on Christmas Eve," Esser said in a statement.
Visitors will have to undergo thorough security checks before entering the cathedral on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported.
According to the German newspaper Bild, the authorities in Germany, Austria and Spain have all received intelligence inputs of an Islamist group plotting attacks in Europe, with targets possibly including Christmas masses in Cologne, Vienna and Madrid.
On Saturday, special forces in Vienna and Germany arrested several suspects, Bild reported.
However, Al Jazeera could not independently confirm the arrests.
Meanwhile, Austrian police stated that they were boosting security for churches and Christmas markets due to the heightened state of alert, reported Al Jazeera.
"Given that terrorist actors throughout Europe are calling for attacks on Christian events, especially around December 24, the security authorities have taken the corresponding protection measures in public spaces," the Austrian Police said in a statement.
Earlier this month, Spain's Interior Ministry announced it would tighten security measures for the Christmas holiday period.
The Cologne cathedral, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, is one of Germany's most popular tourist attractions, attracting more than six million visitors each year.