Germany tightens gun law as members of the Reichsbürger extremist movement rise. This week, 25 supporters were arrested for planning to storm the German parliament.
Wat is de Reichsbürger-beweging?
De term Reichsbürger is een verzamelnaam voor verschillende groepen, die met elkaar gemeen hebben dat ze de Duitse Bondsrepubliek niet erkennen. Het huidige Duitsland is volgens de aanhangers niet rechtmatig ontstaan. Ze vinden daarom ook dat de Duitse wetten niet voor hen gelden.
The Reichsbürger movement is gaining more and more members, says German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser a Bild. The intelligence services estimate the number of supporters of the movement at around 23,000. According to Faeser, this is a 9.5% increase over last year.
About one in ten members of the movement may be violent. Last year, the German police attributed 239 violent crimes to the Reichsbürger movement. This is a significant increase from 2020.
The stricter gun law is therefore absolutely necessary, says Faeser. “We have looked away from this terrorist threat for too long,” he told the German newspaper.
German authorities expect more arrests
German police arrested 25 suspects in a series of raids on Wednesday. It was one of the largest German counter-terrorism actions in recent years. Of those arrested, 23 are being held in Germany. The country has asked Austria and Italy to hand over the other two detainees.
During the action, the police conducted more than 150 house searches. Among other things, rifles, bullets and crossbows were found, as well as blueprints for special “security units”.
A total of 54 people are suspected. The German authorities therefore expect further arrests and raids in the coming days as part of the investigation.
The suspects’ plan was to invade the Bundestag by force. That attack should then be followed by the formation of a new government and a new army.
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