Two men arrested in raids by German police over alleged Isis plot to attack Berlin

The men are believed to have been in the country using false documents pretending to be Syrian and French

One of the terror suspects being led away by German police (EPA)

German police have arrested two men suspected of plotting a terror attack following raids across the country on Thursday morning.

The arrests were made in Berlin and at a refugee home in the western town of Attendorn based on existing warrants for other cases, police spokesman Stefan Redlich said.

Two other suspects caught up in the raids weren’t arrested.

The men, believed to be of North African origin, are suspected of having links to Isis and the man arrested in Attendorn is wanted by Algerian authorities for belonging to an extremist group. He is believed to have received military training in Syria.

The men are believed to have used aliases and pretended to be Syrian and French.

Berlin prosecutors’ spokesman Martin Steltner said an attack was planned on the capital.

Mr Redlich said the probe started in December and there was no specific trigger for staging the raids on Thursday, noting that searches in multiple locations require preparation. Investigators seized computers, mobile phones and other material.

Germany has not suffered a mass-casualty attack by Islamist extremists but it is still reeling from a mass sex attack on dozens of women in Cologne on New Year’s Eve, allegedly by refugee men.

Last week Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed to tighten asylum rulers and speed up the process for deporting failed applicants.

People from Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia will also not be automatically granted the right to stay as they are deemed to have come from “safe” countries.

Additional reporting by AP