Eight arrested in Danish terror plot 

Danish police arrested eight young Muslims they said were plotting a terrorist attack and had ties to al Qaeda.

"These are militant Islamists with connections to high-ranking members of al Qaeda," Jakob Scharf, director of the Danish police's Security Intelligence Service, told a news conference in Copenhagen.

He declined to comment on the target of the attack and which country it was planned for.

Scharf said police believed they had foiled an act of terror with the arrests, which came after several months of surveillance.

"Our investigation has shown that some of the suspects had acquired materials to make explosives," he said, but declined to say whether explosives had been found.

The Muslims, who ranged from 19 to 29 years old, came from Afghan, Pakistani, Somali and Turkish backgrounds.

Six were Danish citizens, Scharf said.

He added that the eight suspects had been arrested under Denmark's anti-terrorism laws passed after the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.

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