The German Police investigate a meeting of more than fifty alleged neo-Nazis in the north of the country

ESCHEDE (GERMANY), June 22 (DPA/EP) –

The German Police announced this Saturday the opening of an investigation into the commission of possible crimes at a social gathering of alleged neo-Nazis last weekend on a farm in the municipality of Eschede, in the north of the country.

A police spokesperson explained that, according to the information available so far, around 50 people participated in the meeting. “It went on well into the night on Saturday,” she added.

According to information from the newspaper ‘Taz’, neo-Nazis from all over Germany participated in the meeting to celebrate the European summer solstice. The event was organized by the Young Nationalists, the youth organization of the former National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD), now renamed Die Heimat (“The Fatherland”).

The newspaper published photos showing men and women wearing black, red and gold balaclavas (the colors of the German flag). In them, they are seen standing around a bonfire with torches.

The information from the German media specifies that at the meeting rituals were carried out and symbols that dated back to the Nazi era were used. Initially, the origin and authenticity of the photos could not be independently verified.

The meeting place is a farm near the town of Eschede, in Lower Saxony, where so-called solstice celebrations or harvest festivals are common. The property belongs to Die Heimat and the police regularly patrol the area, said the police spokeswoman.

In turn, various organizations periodically call for protests against the actions on said farm. “We will not tolerate far-right activities here in Eschede,” said Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister, Social Democrat Stephan Weil, at a rally in October 2023.