A marathon trial in Germany has come to an end. On 11 July 2018, more than five years after the trial had begun, the higher regional court in Munich handed down the sentences against five members and supporters of the German radical right terror group “National Socialist Underground” (NSU). Beate Zschäpe, the main defendant, received a life sentence; she was found guilty of ten murders, in complicity with Uwe Mundlos and Uwe Böhnhardt, who had died in an apparent murder-suicide pact in 2011.
The judges made a finding of “particular severity of guilt,” which means that her chances of parole after 15 years are very limited. Ralf Wohlleben, a main supporter of the group, received ten years for complicity in murder. Holger Gerlach was sentenced to three years in prison, André Eminger to two and a half years. Both were convicted for supporting a terrorist organization. They provided the group with identities and logistical support. Carsten S. got three years (youth custody); together with Wohlleben, he supplied the terrorist group with the murder weapon. S. made a substantial confession at the beginning of the trial.
The public reactions to this verdict were characterized by harsh critique of the lenient sentence against André Eminger, a crucial supporter of the NSU who never renounced the radical right scene. Furthermore, thousands of protesters nationwide demanded to continue the investigation of the NSU case. Relatives of the victims said that the verdicts brought them little closure with so many unresolved questions remaining, such as the support network of the NSU or state failures during the investigations. (more...)
The Under-Discussed Recent History Of The Radical Right Terrorism In Germany
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