US DESIGNATION AIMS TO NETWORK ANTI-FASCIST TRIALS IN GERMANY AND HUNGARY BY CRIMINAL ASSOCIATION ~ Josie Ó Súileabháin ~ US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubin recently announced the long-awaited criminalisation of anti-fascism by designating “Antifa” a domestic terrorist organisation under National Security Presidential Memorandum-7 (NSPM-7) and four groups in Europe labelled by the State Department as “specially designated global terrorists” and “foreign terrorist organisations.” As part of the Trump Administration’s “initiative to disrupt self-described “anti-fascism” networks, entities and organisations,” ‘Antifa-Ost’ (Antifa-East) was named with three other European groups as an organisation that was perceived as a threat to the United States by “conspiring to undermine the foundations of western civilisation through their brutal attacks.” Despite this show of force, presidential memorandums do not hold the power to designate ‘domestic terrorist organisations’ and, as it turns out, ‘Antifa’ is not an organisation at all. However, “a foreign organisation can be designated and there is almost no due process,” says Shane Kadidical from the Centre of Constitutional Rights. “Then, you go after the U.S. groups for supposedly coordinating their political messages with the messages of foreign groups.” Perhaps intentionally missing the point that anti-fascist groups are autonomous, Antifa-East also does not exist as an organisation. The State Department is in fact referring to the political repression in Hungary and Germany of a group of autonomous anti-fascists known in the German mainstream media as the “Hammerbande” (Hammer gang), accused of assaulting neo-Nazis and fascists in Germany between 2018-2020. In 2023, Victor Orbán launched a European wide hunt for anti-fascists who he claimed attacked those who attended Budapest’s yearly gathering of neo-Nazis and paramilitaries from across Europe. The ‘Day of Honor’ is a commemoration of the final resistance of the Waffen-SS against the Soviet Union in Budapest at the end of the second world war. Despite the event is banned by Hungarian authorities, the far-right continue to meet on February 11. Neo*Nazi march in Berlin, 1998 By weaponising the European Arrest Warrant, Orbán attempted to extradite multiple anti-fascists from Italy and Germany to face trial in Hungary for ‘criminal association’ as defined under Hungarian law (article 459) as “a group that consists of at least three persons, is established for a longer period of time… and operates in a conspiratorial manner to commit international criminal offences.” While most of the conditions for this law, including “organised hierarchically” do not apply to these anti-fascists, the only problem for Orbán was the “longer period of time” aspect which could not be proven based on the events of February 11. Fortunately for this dictator, he could always fall back on the authoritarian repression of a European federal republic. In the same year that Orbán launched his hunt for anti-fascists, a German court sentenced Lina E. and three other co-defendants to five years in prison each for assault and membership of a criminal gang. The attacks took place in Saxony and Thuringia in east Germany, and involved assaults on Enrico Böhm, a publisher and distributor of far-right literature and Leon R., a barkeeper of the far-right bar Bull’s Eye. After Hungary issued a European Arrest Warrant for Maja T. to face trial, Germany followed with a national arrest warrant. Now Orbán had his ‘evidence’ for criminal organisation based on the required “longer period of time” clause, as he could refer to the ‘Dresden left extremist trials’ to network anti-fascists across Europe. Maja was extradited to Hungary and went on hunger strike for 40 days in custody, where they remain in solitary confinement. Zaid is one of the only defendants to be released on bail in Nuremberg, although he has to report to a police station three times a week. As Zaid is Syrian and holds no citizenship in Germany, he faces the threat of deportation. Six more defendants were named by the prosecutor in Dusseldorf for charges like “attempted murder” and “membership in a criminal organisation.” Those who Orbán accuses of being part of a criminal organisation that “slapped peaceful people in the streets of Budapest with iron bars” are identified because they were in the crowd of anti-fascists, rather than specifically committing a crime. “All such investigate activity is absolutely absent in the trial file,” says Eugonio Losco, an Italian defense lawyer for one of the accused. “So there is an association because in Germany there were some similar events, and in Hungary there were some Germans. There is not much more,” Losco says. On December 13, Lina E was alleged to have stolen two hammers in a Leipzig hardware store. On the same night, Leon claims he was attacked for the second time as he was driving home from the Bull’s Eye bar. He told police that the assailants used hammers and that one of them had a female voice. It is on the testimony of a fascist that Lina E was sentenced to more than five years in prison.  “This spiral of radicalization and violence must not be allowed to continue,” former German interior minister Nancy Fraeser said, following the court verdict of Lina E. Yet both Leon R and Enrico Böhm have since been convicted of criminal association to the right-wing groups they belong to. Like in Hungary, the state is using far-right criminals to maintain its monopoly on violence. Alongside the seemingly arbitrary rounding up of political opponents are show trials and media narratives that seek to portray anti-fascism as a “left-wing extremism” and a threat to society. The role of intelligence agencies in confirming this ‘threat’ should not be understated.  Following the sentencing of Lina E, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) claimed that left-wing violence had risen from 700 to 10,300 incidents between 2020-21, contradicting Federal Police (BKA) statistics that have shown a drop of 31% in violence attributed to the left. In contrast, right-wing extremism rose by 16% between 2021-22. When debating the use of violence in our resistance to the far-right, we remember those who have been killed on the streets for confronting fascism, like the east German printer Silvio Meier. On Friday, anti-fascists marched down Silvio-Meier-Straße in Berlin for the memory of the Silvio, stabbed in the chest by 17-year-old youth fascist Sandro S. after a confrontation. He died of his injuries on an u-Bahn platform 33 years ago. Victims of fascist violence. Public domain Is the recent designation of anti-fascism a ‘strategy of tension’ where state actors and the far-right work together to protect their interests and oppose common enemies? What has become known as the Budapest Complex is perfect for a US Administration seeking control over the wide-spread domestic grassroots resistance against it’s own far-right policies. Like all ‘anti-terrorism’ state legislation, the state maintains power through the ‘crime of association’. Where will this authoritarian repression lead? In 1969, the anarchist Giuseppe Pinelli was thrown out of a police station window in Milan and died from his injuries. He was interrogated on his role in the Piazza Fontana bombings that at the time were falsely attributed to Italian anarchists. In 2004, it was proven to be the fascist paramilitary organisation Ordine Nuovo found responsible for the attack.  The threat of far-right violence is ever present in both our communities and in the decaying halls of power. Its popularity is rising among the youth in Germany with the Deutsche Jugend Voran (DJV) and ‘Generation Deutschland’, the second attempt of the populist far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in creating a youth party. Never mind the blundering of ageing fascist tyrants, it is this future we must confront. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Top photo: White House, 7 November 2025   The post ‘Terror’ as a strategy of tension appeared first on Freedom News.

ACTIVIST’S FATHER WALKING TO BERLIN WITH 100,000 SIGNATURES TO “DEMAND JUSTICE FOR HIS CHILD” JAILED IN BUDAPEST ~ Alisa-Ece Tohumcu ~ Solidarity actions have been taking place over the last days with Maja T, a non-binary anti-fascist activist and one of the accused in the Budapest case. Maja, who has been on hunger strike since June 5, was transferred Tuesday to a prison hospital near the Romanian border in critical condition. According to relatives, they have lost around twelve kilograms of weight. Their 2024 extradition from Germany to Hungary was ruled unlawful by the Federal Constitutional Court in April, but Maja remains in pre-trial detention under what supporters describe as “white torture”: solitary confinement, 24-hour surveillance, denial of hormone therapy, and restricted communication. Demonstrations have been held in Berlin, Dresden, Vienna, Düsseldorf, Jena, and beyond. On June 25, members of the Free Maja support network disrupted the Saxon State Parliament, demanding that Minister President Michael Kretschmer (CDU) act on the court ruling. He later dismissed the protest, saying his policies were “for the middle class.” Daily noise demonstrations followed outside the Saxon State Chancellery on July 1 and 2. “We’ll keep going until Maja is back with us,” declared the Antifascist Solidarity Committee Dresden. Activists blame Kretschmer’s government for enabling the extradition and maintaining ties with Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party. Maja is one of several anti-fascists charged in connection with an attack on Budapest’s February 2023 “Day of Honour,” an annual neo-Nazi gathering. They were arrested in Berlin in December 2023 and extradited the following July—before their legal appeal concluded—which critics say violates both German constitutional standards and the European Convention on Human Rights. Maja’s father, Wolfram Jarosch, has begun walking over 300 kilometres from Jena to Berlin. He is carrying a petition with 100,000 signatures, demanding intervention from the German Foreign Ministry. “Every day in prison is a risk to my child’s life,” he said. “Political inaction puts Maja in direct danger.” Demonstration in Chemnitz for Maja T In Schwelm, activists damaged a Deutsche Bank branch on June 22, citing the bank’s role in global arms funding. On July 2, militants sprayed graffiti the CDU’s Hamburg headquarters, blaming the party for enabling Maja’s detention. “We won’t rest until Maja is back with us”. they wrote. Maja’s own words, shared in a smuggled letter, have been cited widely: “Solidarity gives me the strength to continue fighting, not only for better prison conditions in Hungary, but for the freedom of all political prisoners”. Further demonstrations and organising meetings are planned, including a public event in Dresden on July 7. The post Solidarity actions with hunger-striking antifascist Maja T appeared first on Freedom News.

OTHER EUROPEAN GOVERNMENTS HAVE REFUSED TO HONOUR EXTRADITION REQUESTS FROM HUNGARY FOR ANTIFASCIST ACTIVISTS, CITING CONCERNS FOR THEIR SAFETY AND WELLBEING ~ punkacademic ~ Antifascist Maja T today began a hunger strike protesting their treatment by Hungarian judicial authorities since their extradition from Germany last year. Whilst in custody in Hungary, Maja, who identifies as non-binary, has been subjected to inhumane conditions, including several months of constant video surveillance, persistent solitary confinement, and ‘intimate searches’ during which they have been forced to undress. Visits have been sporadic, food has been inadequate, and their cell is plagued with bedbugs and cockroaches. Maja has been in pretrial detention in Hungary since June 2024. In a statement released by the Budapest Antifascist Solidarity Committee they stated they are “no longer prepared to endure this intolerable situation and wait for a decisions from a justice system that has systematically violated my rights over last few months”. Maja was due to receive a judicial ruling on Wednesday (4th June) as to whether their pretrial detention would be converted to house arrest, only for the hearing to be postponed until the 20th, triggering the decision to go on hunger strike. Maja’s extradition was based on a European Arrest Warrant issued by Hungarian authorities for an alleged attack on neo-Nazis at the far-right ‘Day of Honour’ commemoration in Budapest in 2023. The event is an annual commemoration of an attempt by members of the Waffen-SS and Hungarian collaborators to break a Red Army siege towards the conclusion of the Second World War. Maja was extradited despite the intervention of the German Federal Constitutional Court, which had concerns with regard to Maja’s potential treatment. The extradition was initially ruled on by the Berlin regional court, with the German authorities expediting Maja’s transfer before the Federal Constitutional Court was able to rule on an injunction. In January, Maja was offered a plea deal carrying a fourteen year jail sentence. As it stands, they face up to twenty-four years in prison. Maja’s arrest, extradition, and current plight exist in a context of a clampdown on antifascist action in Germany, particularly in the East. Maja was pursued by the SoKo LinX taskforce of the Saxon Criminal Police, and transferred in the middle of the night despite a pending injunction, with the attendance of riot police and counter-terrorism officers despite (as the Saxon authorities later admitted) no credible threat. Other European governments have refused to honour extradition requests from Hungary for antifascist activists, citing concerns for their safety and wellbeing. Hungary’s persecution of the LGBTQ+ community was today condemned by a senior legal scholar at the European Court of Justice. Hungary in 2022 was downgraded by the EU Parliament from a democracy to an authoritarian state, but continues to have access to the European Arrest Warrant system. These wider concerns are echoed by Maja, who in their declaration concluded that “no more people should be extradited to Hungary”. A further activist, Zaid from Nuremberg, remains under threat of extradition. The post Antifascist Maja T. on hunger strike to protest “inhumane” prison conditions appeared first on Freedom News.

JUDGE CITES “RISKS OF VIOLATIONS OF GUARANTEED RIGHTS” TO FREEDOM FROM TORTURE AND TO A FAIR TRIAL IN BUDAPEST ~ Scott Harris ~ The extradition chamber of the Paris Court of Appeal today (9 April) rejected the extradition to Hungary of Rexhino “Gino” Abazaj, a 32-year-old Albanian anti-fascist wanted for alleged violence against neo-Nazis in Budapest. Arrested in November 2024, he was already released in late March under judicial supervision, which has now been lifted. The activist would have faced up to 24 years in prison if extraticted, in a case which sparked a widespread mobilisation from activists as well as unions and politicians. The president of the court cited “risks of violations” of the rights guaranteed by articles of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), relating to the prohibition of torture and the right to a fair trial. Gino hailed the decision as “very positive”, for himself as well as other activists. “There are other anti-fascists wanted by Hungary, others in prison, but France has shown today that it must not be subjected to the demands of an authoritarian and neo-fascist country like Hungary” he said. Gino’s arrest stems from his alleged involvement in clashes during the far right “Day of Honour” gathering in Budapest in 2023. Seventeen other anti-fascists have been arrested in the case, including Italian MEP Ilaria Salis who spent 15 months in pre-trial detention, Maja T who was extradited to Hungary last year, and Johann G, arrested in November. In January, seven more anti-fascists wanted in the case turned themselves in. While Hungarian authorities accuse anti-fascists of participating in a “criminal organisation” and committing violent acts., neo-Nazi participants in the same clashes were released without prosecution. During Gino’s case, Hungary’s vague assurances about detention conditions and trial fairness drew sharp criticism, and the defence cited grim reports of “white torture” in Hungarian prisons, including permanent solitary confinement and 24-hour surveillance. Gino could still be arrested if he travels to other European countries, and supporters will now aim to cancel the European arrest warrant issued at the request of Viktor Orbán’s government. The post French court rejects antifascist Gino extradition to Hungary appeared first on Freedom News.

THE DEFENCE CITED GRIM REPORTS OF “WHITE TORTURE” IN HUNGARIAN PRISONS, INCLUDING PERMANENT SOLITARY CONFINEMENT AND 24-HOUR SURVEILLANCE ~ Alisa-Ece Tohumcu ~ After five months in Fresnes Prison, Rexhino “Gino” Abazaj, a 32-year-old Albanian anti-fascist activist, was released under judicial supervision yesterday (26 March). Arrested in Montreuil in November 2024, he faces up to 24 years in prison if extradited to Hungary for alleged violence against neo-Nazis. His case, which has sparked a widespread mobilisation from activists, unions, and politicians, will be decided by the Paris Court of Appeal on April 9. Gino’s arrest stems from his alleged involvement in clashes during the far right “Day of Honour” gathering in Budapest in 2023. Seventeen other anti-fascists have been arrested in the case, including Italian MEP Ilaria Salis who spent 15 months in pre-trial detention, and Maja T who was extradited to Hungary last year. In January, seven anti-fascists wanted in the case turned themselves in. During yesterday’s hearing, prosecutors questioned the feasibility of house arrest due to issues with Gino’s housing documentation. However, his legal team defended the arrangement and presented a job offer as further proof of stability. Gino himself addressed the court, expressing the strength of his support network.  After deliberation, the court ruled in his favour, granting release without electronic monitoring. While Hungarian authorities accuse anti-fascists of participating in a “criminal organisation” and committing violent acts., neo-Nazi participants in the same clashes were released without prosecution. Hungary’s vague assurances about detention conditions and trial fairness have also drawn sharp criticism. The defence cited grim reports of “white torture” in Hungarian prisons, including permanent solitary confinement and 24-hour surveillance. The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture has documented overcrowding, inhumane conditions, and systemic abuse. Hungary’s judiciary, weakened under Viktor Orbán’s rule, faces mounting EU criticism. The 2016 dismissal of a judge who criticised judicial reforms and ongoing protests by Hungarian magistrates highlight deep concerns about political interference in legal processes. “There is an obvious lack of separation of powers,” Gino’s lawyers argued, adding that France must not become complicit in an unfair political prosecution. “The charges are disproportionate. The process is unfair. The risks are real,” declared the Committee for the Liberation of Gino. “France must refuse this extradition.” Outside the courthouse, supporters repeated the chant: “Free Gino! Free Maja! Free all antifas!” Video and top photo: Milan, 1 March The post Antifascist Gino released ahead of extradition judgement appeared first on Freedom News.

MAJA T OFFERED FOURTEEN YEARS IN PLEA DEAL FOR ATTACKS AT NEO-NAZI ‘DAY OF HONOR’ ~ Juju Alerta ~ Seven of the anti-fascists in hiding since the ‘Day of Honour’ events in Budapest have turned themselves in to German authorities, reported ABC Dresden on 20 January. The unnamed activists are accused of dangerous bodily harm and membership of a criminal organisation following attacks on German, Polish and Hungarian neo-Nazis at the far-right convergence in February 2023. It is understood that several of them are also accused of attempted murder. Gino, another anti-fascist wanted in the case, was recently arrested in France and is currently battling his extradition to Hungary. Meanwhile, supporters reported that Maja T., a non-binary activist also accused in the case, is being offered 14 years in prison in return for a confession. Extradited to Hungary in what supporters described as a ‘night and fog’ operation, they could otherwise face up to 20 years at trial. The German Federal Prosecutor’s Office and domestic security service have been cooperating with Hungarian authorities in the two-year hunt for the activists. Their family and friends were also subjected to widespread surveillance, including over twenty house searches. During the investigation, widespread agitation by Hungarian and German neo-Nazis caught on in the press. As with the Antifa-Ost case, “absurd threat scenarios of a new RAF and left-wing terror were propagated”, said ABC Dresden. “The potential will to extradite us is an expression of a transnational hunt for anti-fascists”, said the seven in a statement. They described the accusation of attempted homicide raised against some of them as “a politically motivated escalation” which serves “to deter and legitimise the action against anti-fascist practice. It is obvious that the current anti-fascist movement is not aimed at killing Nazis”. The post Seven anti-fascists wanted by Hungary turn themselves in appeared first on Freedom News.

SOLIDARITY ACTIONS BEING ORGANISED WITH “NANUK”, ACCUSED OF ATTACKING NAZIS IN SAXONY ~ Jay Alerta ~ Anti-fascist Thomas J., also referred to as “Nanuk”, was arrested by investigators from the Saxony State Criminal Police Office in Berlin on Monday 21 October, reported German media. Following his arrest, he was brought before a judge in Karlsruhe and has been in custody since then. In addition, two houses were searched in Berlin-Kreuzberg and Berlin-Mitte. State authorities are currently searching for several anti-fascists in hiding. These are said to be connected to the “Antifa Ost” case – in which a group of antifascists have been sentenced to prison terms for attacks on Nazis since 2019. Nanuk is also alleged to have participated in the 2019 attack on the Federal Court of Justice in Leipzig. Initially, investigations regarding the Leipzig attack focused on Section 129a (membership in a terrorist organization), which allows for expanded investigative powers such as secretly searching chat histories on smartphones or bugging apartments, as already happened in the Antifa Ost case. However, this case was closed in June and individual charges of arson and property damage referred to the public prosecutor’s office. Coming shortly after the deportation to Hungary of antifascist Maja T, this investigation reflects a new dimension of repression targeting individuals involved in anti-fascist movements. Also connected to the Budapest case is the arrest of anti-fascist Hanna in Nuremberg this May. In her case, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office is now trying to fabricate a charge of attempted murder because she is said to have participated in attacks on fascists during a counter-demonstration on the occasion of the annual “Day of Honor” in Budapest. In the wake of Nanuk’s arrest, anti-fascist groups have organised solidarity demonstrations in several German cities. The solidarity group of the Antifa Ost trial stated that state authorities were trying to “use the horseshoe theory to equate our comrades with the Nazis who were attacked”. The solidarity group sent “strength to all those who successfully evade the authorities, to all those behind bars and those outside who continue to fight for the ideas that the state tries to suppress.” The post Antifascist in hiding arrested in Berlin appeared first on Freedom News.