5 months ago
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German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said on Tuesday that while Germany's democracy was strong, it was coming under considerable pressure.
Among the threats she cited were far-right elements in German society and increasing espionage activities on the part of Russia and China.
Her comments came as Germany's domestic intelligence agency BfV presented its report for 2023.
'We won’t be intimidated'
Faeser called for active support of democratic ideals. "We must actively defend our democracy," she said.
She also said the general security situation "is and remains tense," while stressing that it was clear that "we will not let ourselves be intimidated."
She named the Islamist scene with its antisemitic tendencies as one of the risks for security.
'High level of threats'
BfV President Thomas Haldenwang also spoke of a "very high level of threats," with the risk of extremist Islamist attacks rising particularly since the deadly raids by Hamas in southern Israel on October 7.
He said the danger came both from jihadi terrorists and radicalized lone wolves.
The conflict in Gaza had also acted "like an accelerant for antisemitism in Germany," he added.
According to the 2023 report, there was a record number of crimes with an extremist background in 2023, climbing by around 4,000 to 39,433.
tj/rc (Reuters, dpa, AFP)
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