Police in the German regions of Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-West Pomerania and Saxony-Anhalt have conducted several raids against a neo-Nazi group that was allegedly plotting an arson attack against a mosque.
Police identified at least seven members of the “Free Forces Prignitz” aged between 32 and 40 who are believed to have been involved with a plot to set a mosque on fire in the town of Wittenberge. According to Torsten Herbst, spokesman for the police headquarters in Brandenburg, the men planned to use Molotov cocktails.
Herbst added that the suspects also allegedly planned to attack businesses owned by migrants or those with migration backgrounds as well, German tabloid Bild reports.
During the raids, investigators found live ammunition, several bladed weapons and are also said to have found various pieces of pro-Nazi material including propaganda and “Nazi devotional items.” A police spokesman added that investigators also seized electronic devices and were still searching them. Around 150 officers were involved in the raids in Brandenburg alone.
The raids are come just months after another set of large-scale raids across the country aimed at members of the so-called Reichsburger movement, a group that does not recognize the current German constitution as legal or legitimate.
The raid this week echoes a similar police operation in 2017 that saw two people arrested who were allegedly plotting to also attack migrants, Jews, and police officers. They were also members of the Reichsburger movement.
Earlier week, it was revealed that the German army special forces command (KSK) would also be partially dissolved due to many members of the unit showing sympathies to far-right ideologies.
The German Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD) claimed that members of the KSK were five times more likely to hols what they called extremist views than regular members of the German Bundeswehr.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.