Germany has banned the neo-Nazi group Hammerskins Germany and is raiding houses of dozens of its members
ByKIRSTEN GRIESHABER Related Press
September 19, 2023, 2:56 AM
German Inside Minister Nancy Faeser briefs the media after the cupboard assembly of the German authorities in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. German Inside Minister Nancy Faeser bans neo-Nazi group “Hammerskins Germany”. Police search a minimum of 28 flats in 10 federal states since this morning. (AP Picture/Markus Schreiber, File)
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BERLIN — The German authorities on Tuesday banned the neo-Nazi group Hammerskins Germany and raided houses of dozens of its members. The group is an offshoot of an American right-wing extremist group and performs a distinguished function throughout Europe.
The Hammerskins Germany is an offshoot of the Hammerskins Nation based in the US in 1988, in keeping with the Inside Ministry.
It performs a distinguished function within the right-wing extremist scene in Europe. Worldwide, members of this affiliation discuss with themselves as “brothers” and see themselves as an elite “brotherhood” practising their subcultural lifestyle. The group additionally sees itself because the elite of the right-wing extremist skinhead scene, in keeping with the ministry.
“The ban of the Hammerskins Germany is a tough blow towards organized right-wing extremism,” Inside Minister Nancy Faeser mentioned, including that the ban included the affiliation’s regional chapters and its sub-organization Crew 38.
“With this ban, we’re placing an finish to the inhumane actions of an internationally lively neo-Nazi affiliation in Germany,” she added. “This sends a transparent sign towards racism and antisemitism.”
In Germany, the grouping contains round 130 members. Through the early morning raids in 10 states, police searched houses of 28 group members. It was not instantly clear if any members had been detained.
Forward of the ban, the German federal and state governments cooperated intensively for greater than a yr, Faeser mentioned, including that “we additionally labored intently with our American companions.”
The core aspect of the group’s ideology is the propagation of a racial doctrine primarily based on Nazi ideology. The aim of the affiliation Hammerskins Germany is to consolidate its right-wing extremist worldview, notably by way of concert events the place it tries to enchantment to non-members to radicalize them, the ministry mentioned.
“The fitting-wing extremist orientation of the internationally networking group manifests itself particularly by way of the distribution of recordings of right-wing extremist and antisemitic music, the group of right-wing extremist concert events, and the sale of right-wing extremist merchandise,” it mentioned.
The ban of the Hammerskins Germany is the twentieth ban of a right-wing extremist affiliation by the German Inside Ministry.
