BERLIN (Reuters) – Authorities in four German states searched properties related to the right-wing extremist Compact magazine after the interior ministry on Tuesday banned the publication, saying it worked against the constitutional order.
Searches of the magazine’s properties as well as the homes of its top figures, management and leading shareholders in Brandenburg, Hesse, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt were aimed at seizing assets and other evidence, according to a statement from the ministry.
“It is a central mouthpiece of the right-wing extremist scene. This magazine incites hatred against Jews, people with a history of migration and our parliamentary democracy in an unspeakable manner,” said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.
The ban, which also applies to Compact’s subsidiary Conspect Film, prohibits any continuation of previous activities.
Compact magazine’s editor-in-chief, Juergen Elsaesser, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
The monthly magazine, with a circulation of 40,000 and wide social media presence, disseminates a concept of society that seeks to portray certain ethnic groups as second-class citizens and create a climate of marginalization, said the ministry.
(Reporting by Miranda Murray; Editing by Tom Hogue and Lincoln Feast.)
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