Germany raids suspected armed far-right group
German police searched properties in several states Tuesday as part of a probe into a suspected right-wing extremist group allegedly in possession of automatic firearms.
Eight suspects were targeted in the raids, which involved police special forces in Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia, according to prosecutors and police.
The suspects, aged between 32 and 57, are accused of "having formed and participated in an armed group based on alleged right-wing extremist views," said a statement.
Four of them are accused of illegally possessing "military weapons and other fully automatic firearms," it said.
Tuesday's raids come after a pistol and ammunition were seized from one of the suspects in April.
The searches, targeting 13 properties, aimed to find weapons and gather fresh information about the group's activities and plans, officials said. Investigations are ongoing.
Germany has been on alert after a rise in politically motivated crimes, with a particularly pronounced threat of far-right extremism.
Officials in May reported a 40 percent surge in such offences last year, ranging from hate speech to acts of physical violence.
In total, an unprecedented 84,172 politically motivated crimes were recorded in 2024, almost half of them driven by a far-right ideology.
