Germany says it broke up a far-right group that planned attacks. 5 people have been arrested
BERLIN (AP) — German police arrested five people on Wednesday accused of involvement with a far-right group calling itself 'Last Defense Wave' that allegedly aimed to destabilize the country's democratic system by carrying out attacks on migrants and political opponents.
The early-morning arrests in various parts of Germany were accompanied by searches at 13 properties, federal prosecutors said in a statement.
Four of those arrested — identified only as Benjamin H., Ben-Maxim H., Lenny M. and Jason R., in line with German privacy rules — are suspected of membership in a domestic terror organization. The fifth, Jerome M., is accused of supporting the group. Two of the arrested also are accused of attempted murder and aggravated arson.
Prosecutors said they are also investigating three other people who are already in custody.
According to the prosecutors, the group was formed in mid-April 2024 or earlier. They said that its members saw themselves as the last resort to defend the 'German nation' and aimed to bring about the collapse of Germany's democratic order.
Two of the suspects set a fire at a cultural center in Altdöbern in eastern Germany in October, prosecutors said, adding that several people living in the building at the time escaped injury only by chance.
In January, another two suspects allegedly broke a window at a home for asylum-seekers in Schmölln and tried unsuccessfully to start a blaze by setting off fireworks. They daubed the group's initials and slogans such as 'Foreigners out,' 'Germany for the Germans' and 'Nazi area' on the walls, as well as swastikas, prosecutors said.
Also in January, three suspects allegedly planned an arson attack on a home for asylum-seekers in Senftenberg, but it never came about because of the earlier arrests of two of the men.
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