Police said a group of alleged terror plotters were plotting attacks against politicians, asylum seekers and Muslims. The group was allegedly hoping to incite civil war

German police raided 13 locations across six states on Friday searching for evidence against a suspected ring-wing terror network.

Police were targeting five people aged 20 to 50 on suspicion of planning attacks on politicians, asylum seekers and Muslims.

Prosecutors said the group hoped to plunge Germany into a civil-war-like state, but their plans had not yet reached fruition.

Eight other people were suspected of financially supporting the core group, procuring weapons and providing assistance for future attacks.

The raids were aimed at gathering enough evidence to charge the core group, which was allegedly founded in September 2019. 

Police said they were searching for weapons or other supplies that could be used in an attack.

German public broadcasters ARD and SWR reported the suspects had exchanged messages discussing ideas of the attacks and shared photos of homemade weapons.

The raids occurred in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Lower Saxony, North-Rhine Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.

Prosecutors said there were no initial arrests. However, North Rhine Westphalia Interior MInister Herbert Reul revealed on Friday that an administrative police employee had been suspended in relation to the raids.

Right wing terrorism attracts attention

Right wing terror groups have drawn the attention of authorities after the murder of conservative local politician Walter Lübcke last June and an October attack on a synagogue in eastern city Halle.

Both cases were linked to the extreme right.

In December, 600 new posts were announced targeting far-right extremist threats. Federal police said at the time that they had identified 48 extreme right people who could carry out an attack.

Source: dw.com