Two young people with connections to “Terror 18” are said to have planned an arson attack on an accommodation in Winsen. While the 15-year-old is in custody, the 19-year-old remains at large. Hundreds demonstrated in solidarity with the refugees.

In Winsen (an der Luhe), Lower Saxony, a 19-year-old and a 15-year-old are said to have carried out an arson attack on a Winsen-based accommodation facility for refugeesplannedhave. After an anonymous tip received from Niedersächsischer Rundfunk, the two young people's apartments were searched.

The 19-year-old, who himself comes from Winsen, is said to have initiated the plan. He is said to have asked for support in a chat group of the fascist organization Terror 18. The 15-year-old followed his request. They are said to have planned via voice messages to set the property on fire with gasoline and a storm lighter. There was also discussion about whether or not they wanted to physically attack the residents of the accommodation themselves.

The Terror 18 group is an international fascist organization. The 18 in the name stands for the 1st and 8th letters in the alphabet, i.e. “A” and “H” for “Adolf Hitler” and is based on the neo-Nazi network “Combat 18.”

The Terror 18 group is said to have already committed several attacks, especially against migrants, refugees and queer people. On the Internet she openly uses symbols that were used during the Nazi era, such as the swastika, the black sun, the SS skull and crossbones or the wolf angel. The group was officially banned by the Federal Ministry of the Interior at the beginning of 2020.

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Suspected perpetrator at large

Despite chat messages proving the connection to the banned group Terror 18 and the planning of the crime, the 19-year-old remains at large for now. There is “no urgent suspicion” of a crime, but the case is against himdetermined.

The 19-year-old is said to have been in the sights of the investigative authorities in the past: There are videos on the Internet in which he smashed a stone into the glass door of the facility, which he presumably later planned to set on fire. “The n***** can sleep in the cold for now, dude,” he can be heard saying in the video.

In a conversation with an NDR reporter, the teenager admitted that he was a convinced National Socialist. However, he has now left the Terror 18 chat group and claims to have had nothing to do with the planned arson attack.

However, his 15-year-old alleged accomplice was arrested a day later. After he was seen walking through his hometown in Schleswig-Holstein with a gasoline can, he was first stopped by anti-fascists, later arrested by the police and is now in custody.

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Solidarity protest in Winsen

In response to the publication of the plans, protests formed in the small town of Winsen. Hundreds of people took to the streets in solidarity with the refugees in the accommodation and to take a stand against increasing fascist violence.

In addition to sadness and anger, criticism of the police's actions was also expressed there. It was denounced that it was anti-fascists who discovered the 15-year-old with a gasoline can and had to stop him, and not the police. The fact that the 19-year-old is still at large is also met with incomprehension.

The postWinsen: Foiled fascist arson attack on refugee accommodationappeared firstperspective.