A teenager has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of planning a suicide attack in Berlin.

Officials said the 17-year-old was detained in the village of Gerswalde, 47 miles (76km) north of the capital, at around 9am on Tuesday.

Special forces were involved in the operation, according to the Berliner Zeitung newspaper.

Police tweeted: "The Syrian nationality and concrete attack plans could not so far be confirmed. The investigations continue."

"According to evidence, he joined Jihad and said goodbye to family members," police added.


The Berliner Zeitung reported that security services had intercepted a WhatsApp message about the planned attack, sent from the suspect to his mother.

Brandenburg state's interior minister, Karl-Heinz Schroter, said the teenager was living in a home for unaccompanied refugees at the time he was arrested.

He also told the RBB news channel that he had revealed the whereabouts of other jihadists

German media say the home is currently being searched.

Berliner Zeitung said it is thought the suspect had arrived in the country illegally but was recently registered as an asylum seeker.