One person has been killed after an explosive device detonated in a restaurant in Ansbach, Germany. Courtesy: Today Show

ISLAMIST videos were found on the mobiles and laptop of a Syrian man who blew himself up in Ansbach on Sunday evening, Bavarian officials say.

Police said they found a video on the mobile phone of the suicide attacker in which he “pledged allegiance” to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Islamic State has since claimed responsibility for attack.

Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said the man, who has not been named, also “announced an act of revenge against Germans because they were standing in the way of Islam”

The 27-year-old caused an explosion yesterday which killed him and injured 15 people.

He arrived in Germany two years ago, was denied asylum last year but was allowed to remain in Germany because of the ongoing conflict in Syria, Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said.

The man had tried to kill himself on two prior occasions and had been treated at a psychiatric clinic, the minister said. The suspect was known to police.

The suspect, who was carrying a backpack, had been targeting a nearby pop music festival, but was denied entry. His bag had contained sharp bits of metal.

Some 2,500 people were evacuated from the concert after the explosion, which was initially said to have been a possible gas explosion, went off around 10:00pm local time.

Roman Fertinger, the deputy police chief in nearby Nuremberg, said it was likely there would have been more casualties if the man had managed to enter the concert venue.

Police blocked off the city centre and emergency services were quick to arrive at the scene. Bomb experts are also on hand to determine the cause of the blast.

“An explosion went off in the city centre and a man, who the latest inquiries show caused it, was killed in the event,” police said in a statement.

A dozen people were wounded in the explosion, three of them seriously, added a spokeswoman, without giving any more details.

Michael Siefener, a spokesman for the regional interior ministry, said the explosion “was set off deliberately,” adding that authorities were trying to establish the exact cause.

The concert goers had gathered to watch performances by German pop singers Joris, Philip Dittberner and Gregor Meyle.

Ansbach is a city of about 40,000 in Bavaria near Nuremberg and some 200km north of Munich.

The major United States NATO helicopter base of Katterbach is situated some 6km from the town centre.

🚨 Explosion à #Ansbach: Selon le maire il s'agirait d'une bombe. Au moins 1 mort et 11 blessés, certains graves pic.twitter.com/SOpHXjMYgp — B3zero (@B3zero) July 24, 2016

The blast is the third incident to hit the southern German state of Bavaria in a week, after nine were killed in a shooting rampage in Munich and several were wounded in an axe attack on a train.

Europe has been on edge for months after a string of deadly attacks claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group, including bombings in Brussels and carnage at Bastille Day celebrations in the southern French city of Nice.