An officer in the German army who spent more than a year posing as a Syrian refugee has been arrested on suspicion of planning a terror attack.

The 28-year-old lieutenant, who has not been named under German privacy laws, was living a double life, prosecutors said on Thursday.

Police are believed to be working on the theory that the officer, who has a history of expressing anti-foreigner views, planned to carry out a “false flag” terror attack and blame it on refugees.

No details of the suspected terror plot have been released.

The arrested man successfully posed as Syrian asylum-seeker despite the fact he is of German background and speaks no Arabic.