German state of Bavaria bans largest neo-Nazi organization in the country

The Interior Minister for the German state of Bavaria has banned the country’s largest neo-Nazi organization, Freie Netz Süd (Free Network of the South or FNS). According to the weekly Der Spiegel, authorities have also searched a pub that was allegedly a well-known place for meetings of the ultra-right not only from Germany, but also from the Czech Republic.  

According to the rationale given for the ban, the FNS organization is "aggressive and opposed to the Constitution" and has been continuing the activity of the Fränkische Aktionsfront (Frankish Action Front), which was banned in 2004. Police reportedly searched a pub in Regnitzlosau belonging to the mother of one of the leading figures in the Bavarian neo-Nazi scene.  

The restaurant in a small town of 3 000 about 20 kilometers northwest of the Czech town of Aš was reportedly a notorious center for neo-Nazis. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Hermman said police have also confiscated assets from a third person through whom the anti-state activity of the FNS was financed, including a plot of land and a freight forwarding company.  

The most recent report of the German civilian counter-intelligence services, the BfV, says that about 20 groups numbering roughly 150 members belong to the FNS umbrella organization. The BfV estimates the FNS "mobilization potential" at 300 people.

The organization reportedly maintained spirited contact with many ultra-right parties abroad, such as the Workers’ Social Justice Party (DSSS) in the Czech Republic, Golden Dawn in Greece, and Jobbik in Hungary. The Bavarian Interior Ministry has been trying to ban the FNS since 2012.