German authorities have arrested a 48-year-old man, identified only as Daniel V., on suspicion of carrying out a string of sabotage attacks on the country's electricity grid, easing fears that Russia was behind a hybrid campaign against critical infrastructure. He was detained near Weisweiler in western Germany carrying explosive devices, ending a manhunt sparked by letters claiming responsibility for attacks on substations across three German states and citing opposition to fossil fuels as the motive. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt had described the case as likely "climate extremism", though it remained unclear whether the suspect acted alone.

Prosecutors are investigating a 1 September attack near the Jaenschwalde coal-fired power plant in Brandenburg, where improvised explosive devices were found at a substation, alongside similar incidents in North Rhine-Westphalia and Saxony that have not yet been formally combined into one probe. The suspect also claimed attacks on a substation in Bergheim, which knocked five power generation units offline, and on one in Dormagen, where a passer-by spotted pipes fitted with cables and timers. The episode had heightened concern given Germany's recent experience of suspicious drone activity, including an explosive-laden drone found near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig airport in August, incidents Germany has linked to a wider pattern of suspected Russian hybrid attacks, which Moscow denies.