Sheikh Anwar al-Aulaqi – after Osama bin Laden’s death, al-Aulaqi became one of the most important leaders of Al Qaida. Al-Aulaqi died in September 2011© AFP Photo

Abdeladim el-Kebir was nothing if not inconspicuous. From a terrorist’s perspective, his behavior was perfect. From the perspective of investigators: his behavior was suspiciously perfect.

He had learned the rules under Al Qaida in Pakistan: Stay in your home as much as possible. Don’t go to mosques. Wear Western clothing. Never leave a data trail that can be traced back to your own terror cell. He switched call shops and Internet cafes three times a day. For weeks on end, el-Kebir stuck to the rules with amazing discipline.

But the Federal Office of Criminal Investigation had been hot on his heels since November 2010. Investigators had focused in on the young Moroccan after they found his computer’s IP address on another computer confiscated in the apartment of a woman who had left Aachen to join the “Holy War” in Pakistan.

Nothing else about his biography seemed to suggest he had been in contact with terrorists. He seemed harmless. 29 years old, Abdeladim el-Kebir had moved to Germany in 2001. He studied mechanical engineering and mechatronics at the University in Bochum. In 2009, he was kicked out of school because he had missed some tests. He was an inconspicuous tenant, sharing an apartment with a friend in Dusseldorf-Bilk.

Bin Laden's heirs in Germany

After staking him out for weeks, investigators couldn’t find anything suspicious about el-Kebir. They started to doubt whether they were on the right track. Was he even worth the effort? They debated whether to suspend their surveillance, but in the end decided to stick to him. Around the clock.

Two months later they would find out: Abdeladim el-Kebir was the mastermind behind a planned terrorist attack. He wanted it to end in a bloodbath.

“Kebir, Abdeladim”: The name has been on one of the most highly classified lists kept in Germany since late 2010.

The list records personal information about and pictures of the most dangerous Islamic terrorist suspects in Germany – and those who have gone missing after living here.

Stern has that list.

It is a “Who’s Who” of extremely dangerous Islamists. Most of them have been ranked by the police as “instigators”: persons they believe would willing to do anything, from a martyr suicide bombing to a mass murder. They are bin Laden’s heirs in Germany.

A number are on Interpol’s Wanted list of potential terrorists.