More than 3,000 policemen carry out the largest raid in German history
The largest raid in the history of Germany ended this morning with the plans of an extremist group to carry out a coup in Germany with concrete plans to storm the Bundestag, the federal parliament, and kidnap relevant politicians. Investigations by the Federal Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Criminal Investigation Office (BKA) implicated 52 people in the conspiracy, of whom 25 were immediately arrested. More than 3,000 police officers, including special assault groups from the federal states and GSG-9, the elite anti-terrorism unit of the federal police, searched 130 homes, offices and warehouses throughout Germany, including the police headquarters. the Special Forces Commandos (KSK) of the Bundeswehr, the federal army. The operation focused on locations in Bavaria, Saxony, Thuringia, Hesse and Baden-Württemberg, although there were also simultaneous searches in Austria and Italy. Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann spoke of an “anti-terrorist operation”.
Prosecutors and police specialized in the fight against terrorism accuse those involved of forming a terrorist organization and preparing a coup to end the democratic system and the rule of law with the armed assault on the Bundestag and the kidnapping of prominent German politicians. The men and women in the group were counting on this to lead to riots in Germany and the solidarity with their operation of a good part of the country’s security and military forces, which would have ultimately led to regime change. Some media affirm that the coup leaders had the intention of starting their operation several times in recent days and that the police intervention was unleashed when all the suspects were located. The agents of the raid surprised each and every one of the 52 suspected terrorists.
The agents arrested the presumed leaders of the coup group. Among them the self-proclaimed “Henry XIII, Prince Reuss”, 71 years old and leader of the movement of the so-called “Reichsbürger”, literally “citizens of the Reich”, who deny the existence of the Federal Republic and the legality of its constitution and its authorities. , have far-right and neo-Nazi tendencies and follow conspiracy theories close to the QAnon ideology, which motivated the assault on the Capitol in Washington in January 2021. The former German army officer Rüdiger has also been identified among those suspected of being part of a terrorist organization von P., 69, a former commander of the paratroop corps, as well as the politics of the ultranationalist Alternative for Germany (AfD) Birgit Malsack Winkemann, 58, who as a former Bundestag deputy has extensive knowledge of the Reichstag and the rest of the remaining parliamentary buildings.
Sources of the investigation indicated that other members of the coup group are several former soldiers of the federal army, as well as an active duty sergeant and member of the KSK commandos and at least one suspended police officer. German media point out that a lawyer, an internist and a pilot have also been identified. Several of the suspects have actively participated in demonstrations against measures to combat the coronavirus epidemic and those currently being called to criticize the government’s policy in the Ukraine crisis. According to sources from the federal prosecutor’s office, all of them planned to create a shadow army to carry out their coup plans. His “homeland defense companies” would be stationed throughout Germany.
The group allegedly bought weapons and war materiel and held clandestine firing exercises. Investigators in the case stated that they had “unusually high” funds available to finance their activities. After the coup, they planned to place “Henry XIII, Prince Reuss” at the head of a new government, who would begin immediate negotiations with Russia, for which he had initiated contacts with Russian diplomats together with his partner, Vitalia B., 39. . Until now, the armed wing of the organization, under the command of ex-military officer Rüdiger von P., has been trying to recruit police officers and soldiers who are sympathetic to his ideas. The investigators have verified the holding of meetings in various parts of Germany, as well as the systematic observation by the group of various military barracks with the aim of choosing the best ones for their troops.