BERLIN, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer banned the right-wing extremist group Combat 18 in Germany on Thursday.
"Right-wing extremism and anti-Semitism have no place in our society," said Seehofer.
A total of 210 police officers had been searching the homes of leading club members in six federal states since the early morning local time on Thursday, according to the Interior Ministry.
Mobile phones, laptops, data and sound carriers, "objects of relevance to weapons law", clothing, Nazi devotional objects and propaganda material had been confiscated during the raids, the ministry noted.
Especially by producing and distributing right-wing extremist music and organizing right-wing extremist concerts, Combat 18 had spread the "inhuman attitude with right-wing extremist and anti-Semitic hate into our society", said Seehofer.
German law allows banning associations if the "purposes or its activities are contrary to criminal law" or if the association is "directed against the constitutional order", which was the case with Combat 18 Germany, the BMI noted.
Following the murder of German politician Walter Luebcke last year and the attack on a synagogue in Halle by a right-wing extremist, Seehofer had presented a program to intensify the fight against right-wing extremism.
In December, Seehofer confirmed that Germany's domestic intelligence service (BfV) and the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) would be reorganized to better fight right-wing extremists in Germany. Among other things, the reorganization included 600 new jobs.
At least 12,000 people associated with the extreme right-wing lived in Germany, said Seehofer, adding that this was "a great challenge for internal security" in the country.
