Right-wing extremists are gaining ground in Brandenburg, according to the new report by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution. What’s particularly alarming is that many of them are considered violence-oriented.
According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the number of right-wing extremists in Brandenburg reached a new high last year.
3,650 people were registered—almost a fifth more than the previous year , as Interior Minister René Wilke (independent) reported at the presentation of the 2024 Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution report on Wednesday. Of these, 40 percent are classified as “violence-oriented.” The number of such individuals increased by 130 to 1,430, it was reported
1,600 party supporters with “extremism potential”
According to the report, around 1,600 people associated with political parties are also considered to have “extremist potential.” These include members of the AfD and the Young Alternative (JA), “Die Heimat,” and “Der Dritte Weg.”
In May, the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution classified the AfD as “confirmed right-wing extremist” based on a new report. Following a complaint by the AfD to the Potsdam Administrative Court, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution suspended the upgrade for the duration of the proceedings and continues to list the party as a suspected case for the time being.
The report states that approximately 420 right-wing extremists are organized independently of any party. These include 27 right-wing extremist bands and 14 songwriters (an increase of one each). The number of “Reich Citizens” and self-governors remained roughly the same (approximately 1,000).
Number of left-wing extremists unchanged
According to the report, the number of left-wing extremists remained unchanged at 550 compared to the previous year, and the number of violence-oriented autonomous groups also remained unchanged at 200.
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution also counted 225 Islamists for 2024, an increase of five. Among them, 85 individuals (+5) were identified as having links to the “Islamist North Caucasian Scene,” which is alarming because groups in the Caucasus have partially subordinated themselves to the “Islamic State” (IS).
Wilke: Social media reinforces trend
Wilke said on Wednesday on rbb24 Brandenburg aktuell that more needs to be done on the topic of media literacy across all generations. A stronger preventative approach is needed, especially among young people. This is the responsibility of his ministry, but also of society as a whole, the Interior Minister said.
“At the moment it seems to me as if we are thrown completely unprepared and unarmed into a world that does a lot to us without us actually knowing it and without us having sufficient control over it,” says Wilke.
As an example, the Interior Minister cited social media, which is primarily used by young people . They are guided by algorithms, clicking from one video to the next, and suddenly finding themselves in spheres from which it is difficult to escape.
Axel Heidrich, acting head of the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution, stated: “We observe, especially among young people, that building blocks of sometimes different ideologies are combined without reflection.”
