German police made several arrests Tuesday in an anti-terror raid against a nationalist group that’s been targeting refugee shelters over the past year.
The group is charged with four attempted murders in late October and has terrorized refugee shelters in the eastern town of Freital. When federal prosecutors took over the investigation of the group in April, it changed the label from “intimidators” to “terrorists” for “violently promulgate its right-extremist ideology by way of attacks against asylum-seekers and those of a different political orientation.”
The group’s activities date back to June when the town of around 40,000 decided to open up an asylum shelter to host refugees. Protests broke out, and a left-wing politician had his car blown up for supporting the proposal.
The group was also responsible for an Oct. 31 explosion by the windows of a house where four refugees lived. One of the refugees suffered injuries to his eyes and forehead. The other three managed to shelter in the kitchen after one of them saw the burning fuse in the window.
Federal prosecutors label the case as attempted murder with xenophobia as the primary motive. One of the perpetrators, “Gypsy Philli,” was arrested shortly after the attack. He claims the group simply had a “fire-cracker incident” gone wrong, and he wonders why he’s been in detention for five months without trial.
The group is following the legacy of the National Social Union (NSU), which carried out a spree of murders and bombings, known as the “Kebab murders,” across the country between 2000 and 2006. NSU was based out of the same region as the Freital group, and killed a total of nine immigrants.
A documentary series titled “NSU German History X” is currently airing on German television.
Historian Gabriela Sperl said she made the documentary to warn against xenophobic “indoctrination,” comparing Neo Nazis to a “homegrown Islamic State.”
“It is the same as with the Muslim extremism, IS and its lost generation of youngsters,” Sperl told AFP Monday. “A boy breaks into houses, is finally caught and sent to jail, and they are radicalized there.”
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