According to the German media, the Special Forces Command (KSK) of the country’s Bundeswehr were completing a parachute course as part of military exercises in the US state of Arizona that started at the beginning of the year.

Two members of the German Special Forces have been mistaken for terrorists in the United States, Der Spiegel reported citing its sources. According to the magazine, the incident occurred when the two servicemen decided to visit a nearby hospital to find out whether German soldiers could be treated there if they get injured or contract COVID-19. Der Spiegel writes that requests about potential emergencies are normal, but notes that the servicemen displayed “bizarre behavior”.

When the hospital staff asked them to show their IDs, the plainclothes servicemen refused and instead showed NATO marching orders. The magazine writes that the two acted so suspiciously that the hospital staff alerted the FBI. They thought the German servicemen were terrorists spying on the hospital in order to later conduct an attack.

The FBI then contacted the German Embassy in the United States for information, but the embassy staff couldn’t clear up the situation as they had not been informed about the military exercises due to their high secrecy. The situation was resolved after the agency made several calls to Germany.