The Latest in Germany: Hannover police cancel match due to bomb threat

De Maiziere said he could give few details because he needed to protect the source of information, and because “part of these answers would upset the population”.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and several senior cabinet members had been due to attend the match.

The German national team’s players were put under police protection.

The match was due to have been held four days after deadly attacks in Paris on Friday, when suicide bombers targeted the soccer stadium where Germany were playing France.

Unconfirmed reports from a local German newspaper had said a truck possibly disguised as an emergency vehicle or ambulance initially believed to contain explosives was found at an unknown location.

The nation were also at the centre of Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris after the Stade France was attacked during their friendly with France.

Germany’s domestic intelligence chief stated Wednesday. his country must not be intimidated by ISIS violence, hours after a bomb threat forced the evacuation of hundreds of soccer fans from a stadium.

The HDI Arena in Hannover, which had been under increased security by armed police on Tuesday, was evacuated before kick-off.

“I rang [Germany team manager] Oliver Bierhoff on the team bus as soon as the decision was taken to call the game off. The bus was 5km from the stadium”, Rauball said.

“The matches will take place”, said Reinhard Rauball, one of two acting presidents of the German football federation (DFB) and president of Borussia Dortmund, said of this weekend’s program.

Germany’s friendly with the Netherlands on Tuesday was called off because of an “intention to ignite explosives” at the Hannover stadium.

“There is a high level of threat for Germany and Europe”.

The Minister of the Interior for the state of Lower Saxony, Boris Pistorius, said: “No explosives have been found and no arrests have been made”. The Dutch players, who had been on their way to the stadium when the game was called off, were taken back to their hotel.

“The friendly match tonight has been cancelled”, police said in an announcement shared across social media and over the public address system inside the ground.

Earlier, in Brussels, a soccer match scheduled for Tuesday between Belgium and Spain was also cancelled.