New Record High: 85,837 Politically Motivated Crimes in Germany in 2025

"Seit Jahren nehmen politisch motivierte Straftaten in Deutschland zu," the report states. The number of politically motivated violent crimes also rose slightly overall: authorities registered 4,156 such offenses, an increase of 1.2 percent and the highest level since 2016. "Einen leichten Anstieg gab es insgesamt auch bei der Zahl der politisch motivierten Gewalttaten, von denen der größte Teil auf das Konto von Tätern ging, die dem rechten Spektrum zugerechnet werden," said Dobrindt.

Record High in Total Number of Offenses

Around half of all cases were attributed to the right-wing spectrum. "Etwa die Hälfte aller politisch motivierten Straftaten im vergangenen Jahr sind dem rechten Spektrum zuzuordnen – insgesamt 42.544 Fälle," the statistics state. The number of right-wing violent crimes rose by almost 7.4 percent to 1,598 cases. "Das entspricht einem Anstieg von rund 7,4 Prozent," according to the authorities. The right-wing offenses are for the most part so-called propaganda offenses, such as the use of anti-constitutional symbols.

The increase in the left-wing extremist spectrum was particularly steep. Dobrindt pointed out "dass die Zunahme bei Delikten aus dem linken Spektrum mit 35 Prozent besonders stark ausgefallen sei." "Das BKA sieht außerdem einen starken Anstieg links motivierter politischer Straftaten – einen Anstieg um 35,29 Prozent im Vergleich zu 2024 auf insgesamt 13.490 Fälle." The number of left-wing motivated violent crimes rose by almost 43 percent to 1,087 violent offenses. "So waren es im vergangenen Jahr 1.087 Gewaltdelikte wie Körperverletzungen, die dem linksextremen Spektrum zuzuordnen sind," Münch explained. More than half of the left-wing motivated crimes were property damage.

Right-Wing Spectrum Remains Largest Area

Dobrindt sees "eine deutlich wachsende Bedrohung" in left-wing extremism. According to the BKA, the increase in the left-wing spectrum is primarily attributable to resistance against police officers and arson. "Den Anstieg der Gewalt bei Straftaten aus dem linken Spektrum führte Funke vor allem auf Fälle von Widerstand gegen die Polizei bei Demonstrationen zurück," said extremism researcher and political scientist Hajo Funke on Deutschlandfunk. Left-wing extremist violence is also frequently directed in a targeted manner against political opponents.

Regarding right-wing extremism, Dobrindt emphasized: "The majority of crimes were committed by right-wing and far-right perpetrators, which once again demonstrates that the greatest danger currently stems from far-right extremism." According to Dobrindt, "mit Abstand die meisten Gewaltdelikte von rechtsextremen Tätern" exist. Almost 1,600 were attributed to right-wing and right-wing extremist offenders. Right-wing violence consists predominantly of bodily harm with a racist background.

Left-Wing Extremist Violence with Steepest Increase

Security authorities also recorded an increase in hate crimes. "Die Zahl der als Hasskriminalität gewerteten Straftaten stieg der Statistik zufolge 2025 um 1,8 Prozent auf mehr als 22.000." The largest area was hate crime with more than 22,000 cases. Xenophobia, with 19,484 cases, remained the most frequent category within politically motivated hate crime.

Anti-Semitic crimes also increased: they rose by five percent to 6,548 cases. BKA President Münch explained that almost half of anti-Semitic hate crime was connected to the Middle East conflict. On average, more than one crime against a synagogue was registered per week. "Ein Drittel davon fand im Internet statt," said Münch with regard to the spread of hate and propaganda.

Hate Crime and Anti-Semitism at High Level

Security authorities also recorded an increase in religiously motivated crimes: "Bei religiös motivierten Straftaten verzeichneten die Sicherheitsbehörden eine Zunahme um 5,7 Prozent auf 1.983 Fälle." Violent offenses in this category rose by almost 13 percent, but with 98 cases played a comparatively minor role. "Mit einem Plus von knapp 13 Prozent war der Anstieg bei religiös motivierten Gewalttaten zwar spürbar. Mit 98 entsprechenden Straftaten blieb ihr Anteil an den politisch motivierten Gewalttaten insgesamt jedoch relativ klein."

A particularly sharp increase was recorded in misogynist crimes: "Im Vergleich zu 2024 ist die Zahl der Fälle, die als frauenfeindlich eingeordnet wurden, deutlich angestiegen – von 558 Straftaten auf 819." This corresponds to an increase of almost 47 percent. Münch described this as a serious warning sign and attributed it, among other things, to an increasingly violent image of masculinity on social media. "Ein Drittel davon fand im Internet statt," Münch explained with regard to the misogynist crimes.

For violent crimes that could not be clearly assigned, a decrease was recorded: "Sie sanken um rund 16 Prozent auf 669 Fälle." The number of violent crimes suspected to be motivated by foreign ideological motives also declined: "Dagegen ging die Zahl der mutmaßlich ausländisch ideologisch motivierten Gewaltdelikte um etwa 28 Prozent auf 704 zurück." The number of politically motivated crimes against politicians also fell compared to the previous year – from 122 violent offenses to 85. Violence against emergency services, however, remained a focal point: the number of crimes against police officers rose by almost five percent to 5,144 cases; more than one-fifth of these were violent offenses.

As causes for the increase, Münch cited increasing polarization, the influence of extremist propaganda on social networks, and the emotionalizing effect of international conflicts. "Wesentliche Treiber seien Soziale Medien, über die Hass, Hetze und Propaganda verbreitet würden," he said. "Internationale Konfliktlagen emotionalisieren auch in Deutschland," Münch added. He also pointed to the "weiterhin bestehenden großen Einfluss extremistischer Propaganda, zum Teil aus dem Ausland." Funke additionally referred on Deutschlandfunk to Germany's tougher migration policy as a reason for the increase.

Social Media and Polarization as Drivers

Münch spoke of an attack on the democratic order. "Das kann zu einer Radikalisierung führen, die sich durch Gewalttaten gegenüber Andersdenkenden oder dem politischen System äußert," the BKA president emphasized. "Der Präsident des Bundeskriminalamts, Münch, erklärte, das ‚Fundament der Demokratie' werde angegriffen," it was further stated. "Dies führe im schlimmsten Fall auch zu schweren Straftaten im analogen Bereich," Münch warned.

Dobrindt announced measures to counter the rising violence. "Um die hohen Zahlen bei rechts- und linksextremer Gewalt anzugehen, wolle man Polizei und Verfassungsschutz besser aufstellen, so Dobrindt." The minister is also working, according to his own statements, with Federal Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD) on a draft law for tougher penalties for attacks on emergency services. "Außerdem soll Gewalt gegen Einsatzkräfte schärfer bestraft werden," said Dobrindt. "Ich glaube an die abschreckende Wirkung des Strafrechts."

Political Reactions and Demands

The minister was particularly concerned about the growing willingness to use violence among young people. "Erschreckend sei, dass die Gewaltbereitschaft gerade bei jugendlichen Tätern steige," said the CSU politician. Already at the presentation of the statistics for 2024, when the Interior Ministry was still led by Nancy Faeser (SPD), the then Federal Interior Minister had promised a joint "Sicherheitsoffensive von Bund und Ländern."

Dobrindt placed a particular focus on the protection of local politicians. "Hass und Hetze seien ein Grund dafür, dass sich Menschen zu einem solchen Dienst nicht mehr bereit erklärten," he said. "Wir reden von Tausenden Kommunalpolitikerinnen, die wir schützen wollen, die dringend gebraucht werden,"