MAINZ, Germany – The German counter-terrorism police, GSG 9, has arrested five alleged neo-Nazi terrorists who are suspected of having formed the far-right “Group Freital,” which has been implicated in anit-immigrant attacks. The anti-terror operation took place Tuesday in the eastern-German town of Freital, which is located near Saxony’s capital, Dresden. According to police, four men and one woman, aged between 18 and 39, were arrested. The suspects had reportedly attacked shelters that house refugees, among them Kurds. Also attacked were properties of political opponents, including two bomb attacks leading to huge criminal damage. The suspects are also being accused of aggravated battery and attempted murder. Three other suspects linked to the group have been in custody before. “I am glad and happy about the arrests,” said Melanie Anders, who lives in eastern Germany. “We always hear about Islamist terrorism, but as far as I know, there are more leftist and far-right terror attacks in Europe than religious ones.” German state television Deutsche Welle reported that police found explosives and Nazi memorabilia during raids on several apartments in Freital and in Dresden starting in November last year. In July last year, the group conducted a bomb attack against leftist politician Michael Richter of the party Die Linke. Attacks against refugees have risen enormously from 199 in 2014 to 924 last year. Asan Ardalan, a Kurdish student who lives in western Germany, says: “I think the problem with eastern Germany is, they don’t know any immigrants. Most immigrants in Germany live in the West, we have very few far-right extremists here, because people know there are good and bad people amongst Germans and non-Germans. But in the east they don’t know, they assume everything bad comes from the immigrants they don’t know.” The town of Freital hit the headlines last year when hundreds of anti-immigrant protesters rallied in front of refugee shelters against the newcomers. With chanting Nazi slogans and continuous attacks against immigrants, the town got the reputation as a center for far-right activists. Since the refugee influx into Europe and especially to Germany, which has taken in more than a million newcomers, anti-immigrant sentiments are rising in the country’s east, where there are very small numbers of immigrants or Germans with an immigrant background. However, most Germans understand the refugee’s sufferings and welcome the new arrivals. During the influx peak last year, thousands waited at the train stations with food, water, and clothing to help the incoming refugees. German classes have been established, and people who attended universities in their homelands got better chances also to attend German universities. “All in all, the situation is okay for the refugees. There are a lot of Germans who really do care about their situation,” said Tanja Dobrynin, who herself immigrated from Russia 20 years ago. “We just have to provide better security for all citizens, these terrorists do not only attack immigrants, but they also attack Germans.”
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