A man sparked a mass evacuation and armed response at a German airport when he shouted 'Allahu Akbar’ after police confronted him for not wearing a face mask.
The 38-year-old man, from Slovenia, acted aggressively towards police at Frankfurt International Airport when police approached him for not wearing a face mask at around 5.16pm today.
The man shouted, 'I will kill you all, Allahu Akbar', before he abandoned his luggage and attempted to flee the scene.
Terminal 1 of the airport was evacuated and footage saw armed officers surrounding a suspect while all passengers were seen standing outside the airport with the regional train station also closed.
Police pointed a gun at a suspect at Germany's Frankfurt International Airport
A Federal Police Directorate Frankfurt Main Airport spokesman said: 'A federal police patrol approached a Slovenian man who was not wearing mouth and nose protection.
'He immediately showed aggressive behavior towards the officers and said, "I will kill you all, Allahu Akbar".
'Due to his...behavior, the forces deployed assumed that his statement was serious.
'The man then tried to flee, but was immediately overwhelmed by the emergency services under threat of a firearm.'
Their statement added that the man, who was 'known to police', left his luggage behind when he 'tried to escape'.
The unattended suitcase led to a large part of the departure hall to be cordoned off.
There were also reports of an armed man in another terminal.
Passengers are seen outside the terminal while Frankfurt Airport tweeted: 'Passengers are asked to follow the instructions of the security staff on site'
The federal police said in their statement: 'Since a connection between the two incidents could not be ruled out, this led to the expansion of the cordoning off and evacuation measures.
'The deployment resulted in greater disruption to air and rail traffic at Frankfurt Airport.'
The airport was reopened around 8pm. The suspect being investigated for suspected threats and resistance to law enforcement officials, police confirmed.
'The interrogation and investigations into the incidents are currently ongoing,' they said.
Armed officers surround a man (left) while police are seen in the terminal of Frankfurt Airport (right)
Passengers were evacuated from the terminal as Frankfurt Airport tweeted: 'We will keep you informed as soon as we receive updates from the authorities'
'So far there is no information about the motivation. There are parallel investigations into the evidence of the armed persons.'
Earlier Frankfurt Airport tweeted: 'Due to an ongoing police operation, parts of Terminal 1, the regional train station and the transition to the long-distance train station are currently closed at Frankfurt Airport.
'Passengers are asked to follow the instructions of the security staff on site.'
'As a result, there may be delays in the operational process. Passengers are therefore asked to check the flight status in advance on the airline's website.'
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