The jail term for a far-left extremist who participated in violent attacks on neo-Nazis has sparked outrage on Germany’s left and right.
Hundreds of far-left protesters clashed with police in the eastern German city of Leipzig on Saturday night during demonstrations over prison sentences given to several people convicted of attacks against neo-Nazis.
Earlier this week, a Dresden court found four left-wing activists guilty of conducting violent crimes against neo-Nazis, including a prominent student dubbed in German media as Lina E, and sentenced them to jail terms ranging from two to five years.
JENS SCHLUETER/AFP
The ruling was contested by far-left organisations in favor of Lina.E, who is from Leipzig.
Lina E was regarded as the leadership of her far-left gang, which for several years fought a violent campaign of violence against the extreme right, using hammers, iron bars, and baseball bats.
In one incident in 2019, the group stormed the Bull’s Eye, a well-known neo-Nazi tavern in Eisenach, beating its owner Leon R.
They came after him again a few weeks later.
Leon R was captured afterwards as part of a police operation in Germany targeting neo-Nazis.
The far-left militant organization earned the moniker “hammer gang” due to its violent nature.
Lina E’s partner Johann G is also accused of being involved in the attacks and has since gone underground.
In another incident in 2020, at least 15 individuals were beaten up as they returned from a commemoration commemorating the firebombing of Dresden during WWII. Several people were seriously injured.
Lina E was arrested in November of 2020. Her surname has not been revealed. Three males who joined her group were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 27 to 39 months.
An anti-fascist “X-Day” march was planned for Leipzig yesterday, and there were minor skirmishes between demonstrators and police.
Police attempted to quiet the demonstrators at first, but when they grew rowdy and officers were attacked, authorities used force.
Five persons were detained, all of them were German nationals aged 20 to 32.
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