German Railway Line Shut After Suspected Sabotage; Claim of Responsibility Emerges

A key German railway line connecting Düsseldorf and Cologne remains paralyzed after suspected sabotage caused extensive damage. The closure, which began Friday, has disrupted train services indefinitely, with the railway company reporting "immense damage."

Security circles suspect an act of sabotage, a view bolstered by a statement surfacing on the platform indymedia.org. The message, attributed to a group named "Kommando Angry Birds," claims responsibility for the disruption north of Leverkusen. The group stated they planted incendiary devices in a large cable shaft and a smaller one, aiming to halt what they described as a "mass extinction" driven by "technological escalation."

While police in Cologne are investigating the authenticity of the statement, officials consider a technical defect an improbable cause for the embankment fire that led to the shutdown. This alleged act follows similar incidents attributed to the same far-left extremist group. "Kommando Angry Birds" previously claimed responsibility for an attack on the Düsseldorf-Duisburg railway line in July 2025 and an attempted attack on a substation in Erkrath in January of this year, which failed.

The extent of the damage and the timeline for resuming regular train services are still unclear, leaving passengers and the logistics sector facing significant uncertainty.