Albakr blames German police for brother's death in custody

The brother of deceased terror suspect Jaber Albakr issued a warning to the Syrian refugees who handed over his brother to the police in an exclusive interview with DW's Jaafar Abdul-Karim on Saturday.

"My reaction as an Arab is revenge."

When asked to clarify what he meant, Alaa Albakr said: "You understand. I have nothing more to say about it. I will come as a refugee."

Twenty-two-year-old Jaber was tied up and handed over to police in Leipzig on Monday by three other Syrian refugees, who have since been described as heroes. They reportedly invited the fugitive to stay in their apartment, only to realize shortly afterwards that Albakr was being sought after by police.

In his first video interview after his brother Jaber was found dead in a Leipzig jail cell after committing suicide, Alaa told DW he was convinced of his brother's innocence.

"I raised him. I know how he is. He is not a terrorist," he said.

Jaber told his brother that some imams in Berlin mosques tried to radicalize him.

"In Germany, they tried to brainwash him for a while," he said, adding that, "it is important to know that it was only for a short time and they didn't manage it. If they had, he would have flown back to Syria and never come back."

"I assure that Jaber was not a terrorist and is not a member of IS," he insisted.

Alaa Albakr called for Germany to return his brother's body and also announced he will take steps against Saxony's police department.

"The German police killed him," Alaa told DW. "I want to sue the police in Germany, in the state of Saxony."

Alaa Albakr is 30 years old, married, and lives with his parents and seven siblings in Rif Dimashq near Damascus. According to Albakr, his brother Jaber is a martyr of whom the family is proud.

Thwarted attack

In a raid on Jaber Albakr's Chemnitz apartment last Saturday - during which the suspect apparently escaped - police found 1.5 kilograms (3.31 pounds) of TATP. The homemade explosive was the same as that used in the deadly jihadist attacks in November in Paris and in Brussels last March.

After a two-day manhunt, he was handed over to police, but committed suicide in his cell on Wednesday. 

Albakr arrived in Germany last year and had been granted asylum after passing security checks. Investigators say they believe he was motivated by the "Islamic State" and may have become radicalized while in Germany.

Hans-Georg Maassen, the head of Germany's domestic intelligence service, said Albakr was preparing to carry out an attack on a Berlin airport within days before the raid on his apartment.

The thwarted plot has renewed focus on security after Germany took in 890,000 refugees last year, many from Syria.