Searches at former supporters of the banned Artgemeinschaft in several federal states

According to dpa, properties were searched in Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, among others. The responsible public prosecutor's office initially did not provide more precise details on the number of operation sites, the size of the deployed forces or on specific suspects. The Federal Prosecutor's Office also did not initially comment on a possible proceeding of its own when asked.

Background of the ban

As further emerged from investigative circles, no persons were arrested during the searches. According to the information available, the focus of the measures is the collection of evidence — such as data carriers, documents and other material — that is to provide insight into the further activities of those affected after the ban.

The background is that the Federal Administrative Court rejected an appeal by the association against the ban in November 2024. The court thereby confirmed the dissolution of the association and its classification as anti-constitutional. With the searches now carried out, the security authorities say they are responding to indications that former members or sympathizers are continuing to spread the banned ideology or building new structures.

Legal basis and allegations

According to information from security circles, the legal basis for the measures are criminal offenses in connection with operating or supporting a banned association as well as possible further offenses such as incitement of the people or the use of anti-constitutional insignia. No specific charges or investigations were publicly announced on Thursday.

According to the assessment of the security authorities, the Artgemeinschaft was a collecting basin for supporters of a neo-pagan-esoteric worldview with clear proximity in ideology to National Socialism. Members and officials had, according to this, espoused race theories and an elitist, Germanic-inspired Volksgemeinschaft. After the ban, the association was formally dissolved, but individual members are said to have continued to meet.

Political assessment

The Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Saxony-Anhalt and Brandenburg had repeatedly pointed out ongoing activities from the environment of the former association in recent years. The state offices for the protection of the constitution in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia also identified individual structures. The coordinated searches indicate that the security authorities suspect a cross-state connection.

In terms of domestic policy, the measures come at a stage in which the federal government and the states have named the fight against right-wing extremism and so-called völkisch groups as a priority. In the spring of 2025, the federal government adopted a package of measures against right-wing extremism, which provided, among other things, for expanded powers for the Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the police as well as better cooperation between the state offices.

In parallel, it is being discussed at the political level how to deal with successor structures of banned associations. Interior politicians had repeatedly demanded that so-called phantom associations be dissolved more quickly and that digital communication be monitored more closely. The searches now made public are seen by observers as a signal that the security authorities are consistently continuing this line.

According to the investigative circles, the evaluation of the seized materials is now decisive for the further course of the proceedings. Only after reviewing the data carriers and documents can it be assessed whether and against how many suspects a court case will later be directed. The authorities announced further investigative steps for the coming weeks.