'Terror probe' into Berlin blackout which left 45,000 homes without power
The city's mayor described the actions as "terrorism," as thousands of residents face days with no electricity
Prosecutors in Berlin have launched a terrorism investigation into a suspected arson attack on high powered cables which triggered a blackout in the city.
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Around 45,000 homes were affected by the power shortage following the "attack" on Saturday, which was claimed online by a far-left extremist group called 'Vulkangruppe' [Volcano Group].
The group wrote: "In the greed for energy, the Earth is being drained, sucked dry, burned, ravaged, razed, raped and destroyed."
German federal prosecutors confirmed they are probing the incident on suspicion of "membership in a terrorist organisation, sabotage, arson and disruption of public services."
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Residents face long waits for the power to be reconnected, after the fire which burned several cables on a bridge close to a power plant in south-west of Berlin.
Despite it being put out quickly, around 45,000 households and 2,200 businesses were left without electricity.
The city's mayor Kai Wegner condemned the attack as an "absolutely unacceptable" act of terrorism.
"These are not childish pranks, but rather professional criminals who attacked these power grids," Mr Wegner told German public broadcaster RBB.
"This is not just arson or sabotage. This is already terrorism. It was a left-wing extremist group that once again attacked our infrastructure and, in doing so, also endangered the lives of people, of elderly people who may need ventilators, of families with small children, and we now have to catch these perpetrators."
Berlin wird die Großschadenslage ausrufen. Wir werden damit noch heute die Koordinierung erneut straffen. Die Bundeswehr prüft derzeit ihre Unterstützungsleistung. pic.twitter.com/ckGvwooHeu
— Kai Wegner (@kaiwegner) January 4, 2026
The grid operator, Stromnetz Berlin, said it aims to restore full electricity supply by Thursday afternoon.
It is expected that authorities will rule out foreign involvement and focus their investigation on domestic left-wing extremism.
Franziska Giffey, the Berlin state's Senator for Economic Affairs, Energy, and Public Enterprises, said: "It must be about federal assistance in the investigations.
"The question is whether these are merely left-wing activist groups acting out of ideological motives, or whether there is more behind it."