Overview

• Several politicians including Moritz Körner, Hannah Neumann and Gordon Hoffmann formally requested on July 17 that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution place BSW under observation for alleged threats to Germany’s democratic order.
• The surveillance demands were triggered by a deleted solidarity post from BSW’s official X-account praising Alina Lipp, who is listed under EU sanctions for pro-Russian propaganda.
• BSW’s leadership also endorsed the Brandenburg-based Friedensbrücke association, whose chair and another member are under arrest warrants for suspected terror financing in Eastern Ukraine.
• BSW Secretary-General Christian Leye dismissed the monitoring calls as a "Sommerlochdebatte" stunt, rejecting allegations of pro-Russian bias or ties to extremist groups.
• The Verfassungsschutz is tasked with gathering and analyzing information on activities against Germany’s free democratic order and will decide whether to open a formal observation file on the newly formed party.