A string of explosions has shaken Frankfurt and neighbouring Offenbach, prompting German police to investigate whether the attacks are connected to organised criminal networks.
Two improvised explosive devices detonated minutes apart early Thursday, damaging a café and a shisha bar on Frankfurt’s busy Zeil shopping street, with the second explosion also affecting a nearby bar and bank office. Police arrested a 17-year-old Dutch national, while a 15-year-old Dutch teenager had earlier been detained following one of three similar blasts targeting businesses between Sunday and Monday.
No injuries have been reported, but Hessian authorities say they are examining a double-digit number of comparable incidents, including possible cases of “violence as a service,” where criminal groups recruit others — sometimes minors through social media — to carry out attacks.
The incidents come as German authorities report increasing concern about organised crime, with almost 700 investigations involving nearly 8,000 suspects launched last year, the highest number in five years.
In Frankfurt hat eine Sprengfachkraft ganze Arbeit geleistet und heute fast die halbe Meile in ein Trümmerfeld verwandelt. In einem der schlimmsten Shitholes Deutschlands ist das schon der 5. Vorfall dieser Art seit August! Zum Glück kam es zu keinem Personenschaden. Im Laufe des… pic.twitter.com/r24lr17YdP
— ColdJack (@TheColdJack) September 17, 2026
