‘Heil Hitler’ Soldier Among 275 Far-Right Extremists Probed By German Military
Image by Getty Images
The Germany military’s counter-intelligence agency is looking into 275 suspected right-wing extremists in its ranks, including a soldier heard saying “Heil Hitler,” the Defence Ministry has told parliament in a letter seen by Reuters on Sunday.
About 143 of the cases were reported last year and 53 this year, the ministry wrote in its 15-page answer, detailing incidents of soldiers performing Nazi salutes or uttering racist remarks against servicemen with migrant backgrounds.
Public displays of Nazi symbols and salutes are illegal in Germany, where most people are repulsed by any degree of sympathy to the dictatorship responsible for the Holocaust.
The letter noted the lax manner in which some of the most serious cases have been dealt with.
One such incident is Case 29, which involved a soldier who was heard conspicuously saying “Heil Hitler,” “Heil our leader” and “Sieg Heil, comrades,” the ministry said.
“The case was passed on to the military prosecutor and the public prosecutor’s office, but neither an early dismissal nor a service ban took place,” it wrote to parliament.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.
If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
