Politics Germany-wide police action over hate speech on the internet
Since this morning, the German police have been conducting a nationwide operation against suspected authors of hate and hate speech on the internet. According to the German Press Agency, more than 170 operations are planned.
25.06.2025, 07:29
SDA
The suspects are accused of incitement to hatred and insulting politicians, among other things. The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) is in charge. The day of action has been taking place regularly for several years.
Most proceedings due to right-wing extremist statements
The focus of the investigations in the federal states is on right-wing extremist statements on the internet. In many cases, it is also about criminal insults against politicians, in fewer cases about extremist religious postings or radical left-wing postings.
In North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) alone, numerous police authorities are involved: Officers from Bielefeld, Bonn, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Gelsenkirchen, Hagen, Cologne and Münster struck simultaneously at 6.00 a.m., according to dpa information. Two search warrants are to be executed in NRW and a total of 14 suspects are to be questioned.
The alleged perpetrators have mostly made public statements on social media. For example, one suspect is said to have written on the platform "X" (formerly Twitter): ""Heil Hitler! Once again. We are Germans and a successful nation. Male foreigners out."
Reul: Many have forgotten the difference between hate and opinion
"Many people have forgotten the difference between hatred and opinion," NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul told dpa. "It's so simple: what you don't do in the real world is also not appropriate digitally. It's time for more attitude, both offline and online."
The BKA has been taking regular action against hate crime on the internet with campaign days for several years. As the authority announced in May, 10,732 criminal offenses in connection with so-called "hate postings" were recorded last year - an increase of around 34 percent compared to 2023. Compared to 2021, the figures have even quadrupled.
According to the BKA, hate speech is indeed on the rise, but the Central Reporting Office for Criminal Content on the Internet (ZMI) is also uncovering more and more criminal content.
