German police raids target neo-Nazi group Combat 18

BERLIN (AA) - German police have carried out raids on neo-Nazi group “Combat 18” in six states, the Interior Ministry announced on Thursday.

“Interior Minister Seehofer has banned the group Combat 18 Germany,” Steve Alter, the ministry spokesman, said on Twitter, adding that police officers were conducting raids Thursday morning in six federal states as part of an investigation into the neo-Nazi group.

The move came after allegations that members of the Combat 18 had ties to the far-right extremist Stephan E. who was arrested for the murder of pro-refugee politician Walter Lubcke in June 2019.

Lubcke, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party Christian Democratic Union in the city of Kassel, was murdered by a single gunshot wound to the head in his garden. He was known for supporting Merkel’s open-door policy for refugees.