Sikh Temple bombing in Germany was 'carried out by Isis sympathisers'

One of the accused boys was reported to have already been involved in an anti-extremism programme

A police officer walks past the scene of the blast at the Gudawara in Essen, Western Germany (MARCEL KUSCH/AFP/Getty Images)

Two teenagers suspected of carrying out a bombing on a Sikh temple in Germany are Isis sympathisers.

Three people were wounded, one of them seriously, in the attack on 16 April which targeted a Gurudwara in the western city of Essen.

The city’s police chief, Frank Richter, called the attack "an act of terror".

However, the teenagers have denied intent to kill and said they were acting in ‘high spirits', believing the building to be empty at the time, according to Spiegel Online.

The interior ministry of North Rhine-Westphalia state told regional lawmakers on Thursday that one of the two 16-year-old suspects had been in a violence prevention program aimed at Islamic extremists.

A ministry spokesman said the boy once threated to break a fellow Jewish student’s neck, according to German news agency DPA.

The blast, described by police at the time as “quite violent”, is alleged to have targeted a wedding, although many guests had already departed to another location. A priest had to be hospitalised and two others treated at the scene. There was also significant damage to the building caused by the bomb, allegedly a fire extinguisher filled with explosives.

The Sikh community’s annual Nagar Kirtan – a traditional religious procession in which worshippers march through town chanting prayers - went ahead later in April despite the attack.