Two held in Germany over Starlink attack in Lithuania

Two men suspected of having carried out an attempted attack on Starlink infrastructure in Lithuania are in custody in Germany, Lithuanian authorities said on Thursday.

The men, who are both aged around 20, are accused of running a terrorist organization which is responsible for similar attacks in Bulgaria and Poland, Saulius Briginas, deputy of Lithuania's criminal police, was quoted as saying by public broadcaster LRT.

Infrastructure by satellite internet provider Starlink, which is vital for air defence operations in Ukraine, has been repeatedly targeted in Eastern Europe in recent weeks.

Earlier this month, unknown individuals used Molotov cocktails and flammable liquids to try and set fire to Starlink equipment stored by a company in Lithuania, with authorities suspecting Russia was behind the attack.

However, the attempt failed because authorities had warned the company of possible attacks and security measures had been intensified, according to Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius.

Briginas said on Thursday that those thought to be responsible for the failed attack had no links to Lithuania.

The two men, who he said hold German-Turkish and German-Serbian citizenship and live in Germany, travelled to Lithuania on the eve of the incident and immediately left the country again after attempting to carry out the attack, according to the police chief.

They are currently in custody in Germany due to an European arrest warrant issued by Bulgaria, he said.

Briginas said the two individuals are also suspected of links to similar attacks in Poland and Bulgaria, adding that further people had been arrested in Poland.

A fire broke out at a Starlink ground station in Poland in September, with Warsaw also suspecting Russian sabotage. Starlink antennas have also been set on fire in Bulgaria.