19 May 2017•Update: 21 May 2017
BERLIN
A far-right group tried to force their way into the Justice Ministry in Berlin on Friday, in a latest sign of growing radicalization among right-wing extremists in Germany.
Some 50 members of the so-called "Identitarian Movement”, an increasingly popular right-wing extremist group, organized a spontaneous protest in front of the Justice Ministry building and attempted to storm the building, a ministry official told local media.
The police prevented the protesters from entering the building, and arrested several of them.
Germany’s social democrat Justice Minister Heiko Maas has long been targeted by the right-wing extremists for his liberal views on migration. His latest move to curb hate crime on internet has caused anger among them.
On Friday, German parliament has begun discussions on a draft legislation introduced by the justice minister to impose heavier penalties for hate crimes committed online.
Germany has witnessed growing racism in recent years, triggered by the propaganda of far-right groups, which have effectively used internet to disseminate extremist views, and fake news on the refugee crisis.
Last year, far-right offenses in the country spiked to the highest level since 2001.
Among the 23,555 far-right offenses recorded by the police, 1,698 of them were violent attacks.
These included six cases of attempted homicide, 78 serious offenses involving bodily injury, 74 cases of arson attacks and five offenses involving explosives.
