Italy dismisses beach terror plots report

In a sensational report on Tuesday, the German daily, Bild, said that jihadists were planning to pose as refreshment sellers at beach resorts in the three countries, before detonating suicide vests and bombs planted beneath sun loungers.

The newspaper claimed the information came from Italian and German secret agents, with the alleged attacks planned at resorts in southe France, Spain’s Costa del Sol, and unnamed Italian beaches.

Bild also quoted Seck Pouye, the chief of police in Senegal, who said that the terrorists, from the Boko Haram Islamist group in Nigeria which allies itself with Isis, planned to radicalize regular travellers between Senegal and Europe to carry out the attacks.

But the report has been denied by the Italian intelligence services, with a source quoted by Ansa as saying it was "groundless" and that "there is no specific terror alert on Italian beaches".

A source at Italy’s anti-terrorism department also dismissed the report when contacted by The Local.