Hostage situation at bank in Sinzig, Germany

On Friday, May 8, 2026, a hostage situation occurred at a bank branch in Sinzig, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The incident began around 10:00 local time when an armed attacker assaulted the driver of a cash-in-transit vehicle outside the building. Authorities initially reported that multiple perpetrators and hostages, including the driver, were inside the bank's vault area. A large-scale police operation involving special units from Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Wurttemberg, and North Rhine-Westphalia was deployed to the city center. Following an intervention by the SEK special forces, two hostages were successfully rescued from the vault and reported to be in good health. However, the perpetrators managed to evade capture and remain at large. A search operation for the suspects is currently ongoing, while the police confirmed there is no further danger to the general public outside the cordoned-off zone.