Russians were searching online for details of a terror attack in Germany before it actually happened, an investigation has found.

Michael Stürzenberger, a far-Right anti-Islam activist, was seriously injured and a German police officer killed when a rejected Afghan asylum seeker went on a rampage with a knife in the western city of Mannheim in May 2024.

An investigation by ZDF, a German broadcaster, found that the phrases “Michael Stürzenberger stabbed” and “Michael Stürzenberger attack” were used in internet searches in Russia before the attack took place, raising concerns that Moscow had prior knowledge the stabbing would occur.

ZDF found further evidence of Russian internet users trying to access a webcam feed of Mannheim’s town square, the scene of the attack, shortly before it occurred. This would have allowed them to watch it unfold in real time.

The findings are consistent with revelations by The Telegraph that found Russia carried out online research of fire protocols at a Berlin factory owned by a defence firm just before a suspected sabotage attack.