German cops raid sites linked to far-right group
FRANKFURT : German police yesterday raided sites across the country linked to a far-right group banned by the Interior Ministry, weeks after a suspected extremist gunman shot dead nine people of migrant backgrounds.
"Police measures are going on in 10 states" out of Germany's 16, ministry spokesman Steve Alter wrote on Twitter.
"For the first time, the Interior Minister has banned a 'Reichsbuerger' (Citizens of the Reich) group," Mr Alter added.
"Even in these times of crisis, we will fight far-right extremism, racism and anti-Semitism."
The United German Peoples and Tribes organisation banned yesterday belongs to a wider Reichsbuerger movement.
Its adherents question the legitimacy of the modern Federal Republic of Germany and have in the past entered into armed confrontations with police.
SHOOTOUT
In a 2016 shootout, a Reichsbuerger-linked man killed an officer and hurt two more.
After a racist gunman shot dead nine people of migrant backgrounds in the city of Hanau last month, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer declared far-right extremism "the biggest security threat facing Germany" and announced increased police measures.
Mr Seehofer said the far right had left "a trail of blood" in recent months - two people died in an attack on a synagogue in Halle city in October and a pro-migrant politician was murdered at his home in June.
Twelve men were arrested in Germany last month on suspicion of planning attacks on mosques aimed at bringing about "a civil war-like situation".
The government is considering tighter laws on gun ownership. - AFP
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