A German court lifts a government ban on a far-right magazine
A German court on Tuesday lifted a ban imposed by the government last year on a far-right magazine, ruling that the case against it didn't clear the high bar required to outlaw its publisher.
Germany's previous government banned Compact magazine and the company that publishes it, Compact-Magazin GmbH, in July. Then-Interior Minister Nancy Faeser described Compact as 'a central mouthpiece of the right-wing extremist scene,' and said that it 'agitates in an unspeakable way against Jews, against people with a history of migration and against our parliamentary democracy.'
Compact appealed to the Federal Administrative Court, which suspended the ban in August pending a full consideration of the case. Following a hearing earlier this month, the court lifted the ban altogether on Tuesday.
The court said in a statement that Germany's constitution guarantees freedom of the press and opinion 'even for the enemies of freedom' and that, on grounds of proportionality, a ban could only be justified if the publisher's anti-constitutional activities were proven to be 'formative' for the group. It said a review of the evidence showed that the material in question didn't reach that threshold.
Compact is run by far-right figure Jürgen Elsässer, and produces the monthly magazine of the same name, which has a circulation of about 40,000, as well as an online video channel, Compact TV. It also runs an online shop selling books, CDs, DVDs and other merchandise.
Compact has been published since 2010. In its annual report for 2023, Germany's domestic intelligence agency said that it 'regularly disseminates ... antisemitic, anti-minority, historically revisionist and conspiracy theory content.'
The strength of the far right has caused increasing concern in Germany in recent years.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
28 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Javid: Immigration failures have made Britain a tinderbox
Failure to tackle the migrant crisis has played a part in Britain becoming a 'tinderbox of division', Sir Sajid Javid has said. In his first major intervention since standing down from the Commons last month, the former chancellor warned communal life was now 'under threat like never before'. Sir Sajid and Jon Cruddas, the former Labour MP, will co-chair a new Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion that meets for the first time on Wednesday. The commission, launched in response to the riots that followed the Southport attacks last summer, will make policy recommendations which aim to strengthen communities. Sir Sajid told The Telegraph: 'Communal life in Britain is under threat like never before and intervention is urgently needed. 'There have been long-term, chronic issues undermining connections within our communities for several decades now, such as the degradation of local infrastructure from the local pub to churches, the weakening of family units, growing inequality, declining trust in institutions and persistent neglect from policy-makers. 'In more recent years, new threats like the mismanagement of immigration, cost of living pressures and social media driven extremism, have begun to turn this crisis of social disconnection into an acute threat of social division.' Sir Sajid went on to warn that those issues were now 'converging into something dangerous', adding: 'The country is now sitting on a tinderbox of disconnection and division.' Net migration reached almost 906,000 people in June 2023, while small boat Channel crossings this year are currently at a record high. During his tenure as secretary of state for communities, Sir Sajid said in 2016 that too many people in the UK were living 'parallel lives'. Asked if he still believed this was the case almost a decade on, he replied: 'Yes. I am worried that we are more disconnected as a country than at any other point in our modern history, and that we are far more divided than any of us wants to be... 'As a nation, we have struggled to maintain the connections we once had. There is a pandemic of loneliness that has spread across the country, driving disconnection and that has been put on steroids by social media.' Sir Sajid added issues of integration had not been dealt with fully by 'successive governments' and said political correctness was partly to blame. 'Certainly that is partly due to political correctness and anxieties around being seen to cause offence,' he said. 'But it's also due to a lack of clear policy options – which this commission intends to address – and because this has been a slow creeping crisis that has not received the focus or attention that it should have done. 'Short-term crises, such as the findings of the grooming gangs inquiry, or the riots last summer and those in recent weeks in Northern Ireland, have all laid bare the fragility of community cohesion in this country today. 'All offer a stark warning of what happens when these questions go unaddressed.' Striking a more optimistic note about Britain's future, Sir Sajid said Britain had the 'phenomenal attributes' that it needs to rise to its social challenges. He concluded that the work of the commission will seek to 'build a vision for communities across the nation that all British citizens can buy into.' Sir Sajid and Mr Cruddas will join 19 commissioners from across the political spectrum, spanning academia, business, civil society, the media and religious groups. Prominent members include Lord Bilimoria, a cross-bench peer and former president of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), and Dame Sara Khan, the former counter-extremism commissioner.
The Independent
44 minutes ago
- The Independent
Drone debris found in Ukraine indicates Russia is using new technology from Iran
Last week, Ukrainian drone hunters picking up the debris from Russia's nightly assault on their cities found a weapon that stood out from the rest. It had an advanced camera, a computing platform powered by artificial intelligence and a radio link, allowing an operator to pilot it remotely from Russia. It also contained new, Irania n-made, anti-jamming technology, according to a Ukrainian drone expert. Most Russian attack drones are black, said Serhii Beskrestnov, an electronics expert more widely known as Flash. The new one, he told The Associated Press, was white. Inside, there were no markings or labels consistent with Russian-made drones. Instead, the stickers followed a 'standard Iran labeling system,' Beskrestnov said. Experts who spoke to AP said the labels are not conclusive proof but the English-language words are consistent with how Iran marks its drones. It is quite possible, they said, that it was sold by Iran to Russia to test in combat. Moscow has pummeled Ukraine almost nightly with Iranian-designed drones throughout the course of the war, now in its fourth year. They swarm above Ukrainian cities, their moped-like sound filling the air, as air defenses and sharpshooters take aim. While some carry warheads, many are decoys. Russia is improving its drone technology and tactics, striking Ukraine with increasing success. But the U.K's Defense Ministry said Israel's strikes on Iran will 'likely negatively impact the future provision of Iranian military equipment to Russia," since Tehran had supplied 'significant quantities' of attack drones to Moscow. Israeli attacks on Iran Israel's military would not comment on what it struck. Although it has carried out sweeping attacks across Iranian military facilities and the U.S. bombed nuclear sites, the impact on Iran's drone industry is not yet clear. The anti-jammer in the latest drone discovered in Ukraine contained new Iranian technology, suggested Beskrestnov. Other components in Russia's drones often come from Russia, China and the West. Although Russia's drones are based on an Iranian design, the majority are now made in Russia. And because much of the technology to make them, including the Iranian software and technical expertise, has already been transferred to Russia, the immediate impact on Moscow's drone program could be limited, experts said. However, if Israel struck facilities producing drones and components — such as engines and anti-jamming units — which are shipped to Russia, then Moscow could face supply shortages, experts suggested. A secretive Russian factory Moscow makes its Shahed — meaning 'witness' in Farsi — drones based on an Iranian model in a highly secure factory in central Russia. The Alabuga plant in the Tatarstan region took delivery of its first Iranian drones in 2022 after Russia and Iran signed a $1.7 billion deal. It later established its own production lines, churning out thousands of them. The upgrades identified from debris in Ukraine are the latest in a series of innovations that began with Russia buying drones directly from Iran in the fall of 2022, according to leaked documents from Alabuga previously reported on by AP. In early 2023, Iran shipped about 600 disassembled drones to be reassembled in Russia before production was localized. In 2024, the design was adapted. Specialists added cameras to some drones and implemented a plan, revealed in an AP investigation, dubbed Operation False Target — creating decoys to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses. Alabuga also modified the Shahed to make it more lethal, creating a thermobaric drone which sucks out all the oxygen in its path — potentially collapsing lungs, crushing eyeballs and causing brain damage. The size of the warhead was also upgraded. Jet-propelled drones and AI In at least one case, Iran shipped a jet-powered Shahed that Russia 'experimented' with in Ukraine, said Fabian Hinz, an expert on Russian and Iranian drones at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. Ukraine's air force found two more examples of jet-powered Shaheds in May but it appears they have not been widely adopted. That's possibly because the Iranian design uses a very sophisticated jet engine that also powers Iran's cruise missiles, Hinz said. That likely makes it too expensive to use nightly in Ukraine, he said, even if the engine is swapped to a cheaper Chinese model. The electronics in the drone most recently found in Ukraine are also very expensive, Beskrestnov said, pointing to its AI computing platform, camera and radio link. It's unclear why it was deployed but Beskrestnov suggested it could be used to target 'critical infrastructure,' including electrical transmission towers. Previous versions of the Shahed drone could not hit a moving object or change their flight path once launched. They sometimes ended up 'traveling in circles all through Ukraine before they finally hit a target,' which made them easier to shoot down, said David Albright of the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security. The radio link means an operator can communicate with the drone from Russia, introduce a new target and potentially control many drones at the same time, the experts said. The remotely operable Shahed has similarities to drones Russia is already using on the front lines and is particularly resistant to jamming, Beskrestnov said. There are eight, rather than four, antennas on the drone which means it is harder for Ukraine to overwhelm it with electronic warfare, he said. The new drone has markings that suggest the anti-jamming unit was made in Iran within the past year and similarities to Iranian components found in older models of the Shahed, said Beskrestnov. Such advanced antennas, said Hinz, have not previously been seen on drones used in Ukraine but have been found on Iranian missiles destined for Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. In a statement, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense told AP in the past four months it had found drones with eight and 12 antennas made in China and Russia. Despite sanctions, both Russia and Iran have continued to find ways to procure Western technology. The drone's AI computing platform can help it autonomously navigate if communications are jammed. Similar technology was used by Ukraine to attack aircraft deep inside Russia during Operation Spiderweb, when it used drones to target Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers. Changing tactics Russia is improving its technology at the same time as it is also changing its tactics. Moscow is flying the Shahed drones at high altitudes where they are out of reach of Ukrainian shooters, as well as lower down to avoid radio detection. It is also carrying out massive group attacks on cities including where drones sometimes dive-bomb a target, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said. The drones can be used to clear a path for cruise missiles or to exhaust Ukrainian air defenses by sending a wave of decoys followed by one or two with a warhead. The tactics appear to be working. AP collected almost a year's worth of Russian drone strike data on Ukraine posted online by the Ukrainian air force. An analysis shows that Russia significantly ramped up its attacks after U.S. President Donald Trump was inaugurated in January. And Russian hits have increased markedly since March — shortly before reports emerged that Russia was using Shahed drones with advanced jammers. In November 2022, only around 6% of drones hit a discernible target but, by June, that reached about 16%. On some nights, almost 50% of drones got through Ukraine's air defenses. Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said the Shaheds' effectiveness is likely because Russia is firing more drones, including decoys, as well as the change in technology and tactics. But although Russia appears to have had increasing success striking Ukraine, it is not clear if that will continue. Israel's strikes on Iran will 'certainly' hurt Russia long-term, Albright said. Moscow, he said, is 'not going to be able to get as much assistance from Iran as it has been.' —— Associated Press journalists Lydia Doye in London, Volodymyr Yurchuk and Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Royal Navy is running out of sailors, Fleet Commander warns
The Royal Navy is running out of sailors, one of its most senior officers has warned, leaving Britain potentially exposed in a new era of global threats. When asked to identify the single biggest challenge facing the Navy, Vice-Adml Andrew Burns, the Fleet Commander, pointed to a worrying shortfall in headcount. He said: 'It's people, right now. It's the quantity of people. And it's not just recruitment, it's retention.' His warning comes after Britain's naval forces have failed to hit their recruitment targets every year since 2011, with only 2,450 people joining their ranks in 2023-24, according to data from the Ministry of Defence (MoD). That represented a shortfall of more than 1,500 recruits, which was 40pc lower than their desired target. Notably, this was greater than shortfalls in the Army and the Royal Air Force, which were 37pc and 30pc respectively. The Navy and Royal Marines have a full-time trained strength of about 28,000 men and women, according to an MoD spokesman. 'Improving our culture is important' Vice-Adml Burns said future recruitment is likely to involve fewer uniformed personnel as the Navy seeks to advertise a wider range of jobs. This could mean roles aimed at protecting subsea infrastructure or controlling fleets of uncrewed vessels. While that might open up new avenues for recruitment, it also means that the Navy must accelerate cultural change to make itself attractive to wider parts of society, he warned. Vice-Adml Burns said: 'Improving our culture is a really important part of that. We're determined to make improvements to the environment that people serve in. 'I also think there's a different set of skills required. A different blend in the workforce is required for the sort of systems and challenges we are going to face. 'That doesn't mean, necessarily, that we want people in uniform, because we know there are people with the right skills out there that want to serve their nation, but we don't necessarily have to have them marching up and down a parade ground.' This forms part of the Navy's effort to counter growing aggression from Russia and China – Gen Sir Gwyn Jenkins, the First Sea Lord, said earlier this week that Britain is facing a threat 'more serious and less predictable than at any time since the Cold War'. 'The Navy should be more open to innovation' Vice-Adml Burns spoke at the Royal United Services Institute, a day after it was reported that three submarine captains had been stripped of their OBEs over claims of bullying and inappropriate behaviour. The action came after Adml Sir Ben Key, the former first sea lord, vowed last year to institute a culture that eradicated such behaviour, before he himself was suspended last month over an alleged affair with a subordinate. Vice-Adml Burns said that retaining trained personnel was even more important than hitting hiring targets. 'I'd much rather retain an individual that we have invested in than recruit many more sailors,' he said. 'We know that's much more cost-effective. We've got good data to allow the right sort of interventions at the right time.' The Fleet Commander, who has been in the Navy for more than three decades and was promoted to the post in 2021 after captaining a minesweeper, frigate and assault ship, said the force also needed to forge a 'different relationship' with the private sector. The Navy, he said, should be 'more open to the inventiveness, innovation and ideas that reside in the commercial sector in the way that they used to reside in the military in wartime'. Vice-Adml Burns, delivering the annual Gallipoli Memorial Lecture, said steps such as the expansion of submarine and frigate fleets, detailed in the recent Strategic Defence Review, will not by themselves be enough to counter the range of maritime threats facing Britain. He said the Navy must combine conventional defence systems with large numbers of uncrewed and autonomous craft in order to enhance its warfighting capabilities. It must also expand into areas such as protecting home waters from attacks on subsea cables and pipelines. He added: 'There's also a shift in mentality required to be much more adaptable in the way we acknowledge how threats are evolving and the way we take that information and adapt our capabilities. 'We've learned a lot from Ukraine. If the Ukrainians can spiral their systems in a matter of days or weeks, then I'm sure we can do the same.'
