The nine were arrested early morning in or around Vollsmose, a district mainly inhabited by immigrants in Denmark's third largest city, Odense.
COPENHAGEN: Denmark on Tuesday arrested nine men suspected of plotting to carry out a terrorist attack with explosives, the Danish Security Intelligence Service (PET) said.
The nine were arrested early morning in or around Vollsmose, a poor district mainly inhabited by immigrants in Denmark's third largest city, Odense. They were held under anti-terrorism laws introduced after the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.
"PET has informed me that they have been watching a circle of people in the Odense area for some time," Justice Minister Lene Espersen said.
Espersen said the decision to arrest the men, all aged under 30, came after police discovered that several members of the group had collected materials to make explosives in preparation for an act of terrorism.
"PET have told me that they arrested the men now because it could be difficult to discover more precisely how far the plans had progressed," she said.
Earlier this year, a row over cartoons lampooning the Prophet Mohammad published in a Danish paper sparked attacks on Danish embassies in parts of Asia, Africa and the Middle East in which more than 50 people died.
Denmark, which has troops in both Iraq and Afghanistan, last month charged five Muslim men under the terrorism laws, following decisions led by Espersen.
PET said several of the nine arrested on Tuesday would be questioned later in the day and that police would request they be kept in custody. Under Danish law, suspects can be held for several months while police and prosecutors investigate.
"We have uncovered evidence that suggests that some of the persons were in the process of preparing for a terrorist attack," PET director Lars Findsen said.
Findsen said the arrests would not immediately affect Denmark's terrorism-risk assessment, which has been heightened for some time. He said police had contacted a number of Muslim leaders to inform them about the situation.
Four young Muslims arrested last October were charged on Aug 24 and will face prosecution for trying to obtain weapons and explosives with the intent of carrying out an act of terrorism.
Earlier in August, Said Mansur, a Moroccan-born Dane accused of inciting fellow Muslims to violent holy war, became the first person to face prosecution under the new laws.
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