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High-Security Trial of Alleged Antifa-Ost Cell Set to Open in Düsseldorf

Federal prosecutors accuse six young defendants of attempted murder tied to assaults in Budapest, a characterization the defense rejects.

Overview

  • Hearings begin Tuesday in the Düsseldorf higher regional court’s high-security wing with 72 trial days scheduled through 2027 after the Higher Administrative Court rejected a defense bid to block entry checks.
  • Federal prosecutors allege attempted murder over assaults in Budapest using fists, batons and a hammer, alongside charges of forming a criminal association and dangerous bodily harm.
  • Defense counsel contests any intent to kill, pointing to Hungarian judicial assessments that did not find such intent.
  • The indictment also cites an April 2022 attack on a Thor Steinar store employee in Erfurt that left injuries and more than €65,000 in property damage.
  • All six defendants remain in pretrial detention, and the case has international overtones as the US lists the group as a terrorist entity while German authorities assess its current threat as reduced.