Arrests in raid against suspected right-wing terrorists
Published: Tuesday, Nov 5th 2024, 11:10
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The German Federal Public Prosecutor's Office has arrested eight suspected right-wing terrorists in Germany and Poland. At the same time, around 20 properties are being searched, according to the Karlsruhe authorities. Searches are also being carried out in Austria.
Takeover of territories in East Germany planned by force of arms
The federal prosecutor's office accuses the accused of belonging to the "Saxon Separatists". This group was founded in November 2020 at the latest.
"This is a militant group consisting of fifteen to twenty people whose ideology is characterized by racist, anti-Semitic and in parts apocalyptic ideas," the statement reads. "Its members are united by a deep rejection of the free and democratic basic order of the Federal Republic of Germany."
According to the information provided, the association assumes that Germany is on the brink of "collapse". If the state and society collapse, the group wants to use armed force to conquer areas in Saxony and possibly other eastern German states "in order to establish a state and society based on National Socialism", the statement continued. "Unwanted groups of people are to be removed from the area by ethnic cleansing if necessary."
Paramilitary training with combat equipment
Four of those arrested are said to have been among the original members, one is said to have been the ringleader. According to the federal prosecutor's office, the others joined later. They had repeatedly undergone paramilitary training with combat equipment. "In particular, they practiced house-to-house combat, the use of firearms, night and forced marches as well as patrols", according to the statement. The group also acquired military equipment such as camouflage suits, combat helmets, gas masks and protective vests.
According to dpa, the oldest of them is 25 years old. "It is a great success that the Federal Public Prosecutor General and the security authorities have succeeded in uncovering these outrageous plans and arresting those responsible," says German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP).
"The fact that they trained in the use of weapons and procured military equipment shows how dangerous these right-wing extremists are," said Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD). She referred to the early investigation of the group by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
The detainees are to be brought before the investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice on Tuesday and Wednesday, who will decide on their pre-trial detention.
©Keystone/SDA
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