Germany probes at least 400 police officers over far-right views

There are more than 400 investigations into far-right extremist attitudes or beliefs in conspiracy theories among officers in German state police forces, according to a report published on Thursday.

The real number is expected to be significantly higher, with four of Germany's 16 states not providing current figures, the report by German news magazine Stern said.

How dangerous is the situation?

The German parliament's police commissioner, Uli Grotsch, said the presence of such people represented an enormous threat.

"We are living in times in which right-wing extremists are deliberately trying to destabilize the police force," Grotsch told police.

North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul told Stern that such individuals were not welcome in the police force.

"Police officers who do not stand on the ground of the constitution, but pursue extremist views, are a great danger to democracy and the rule of law," said Reul.

The states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Bremen, and Thuringia did not provide any up-to-date figures about such investigations.

Investigations into possible extremists among federal and state security authorities have been ongoing for years. In 2022, Germany's Interior Ministry published a report that found right-wing extremist activities in 327 cases.

German military's intelligence service (MAD) had the most cases, with 83 employees confirmed to have taken part in "individual extremist activities." The Federal Police had the second-highest instance with 18 members.

The extremist activities included participation in right-wing extremist events and taking part in extremist chat groups, as well as having ties to extremist parties and organizations.