Trial Begins for German 'Hammer Gang' Linked to Antifa Violence

Sun Nov 30 2025 21:28:09 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Seven individuals face serious charges in Dresden for their involvement with Antifa Ost, notorious for violent attacks targeting right-wing groups.

In a significant legal case, seven defendants have been arraigned in a German court for their alleged membership and criminal activities linked to Antifa Ost, a militant left-wing group known as the 'hammer gang'. The group, responsible for violent assaults on perceived right-wing individuals, has drawn international attention, especially after the U.S. designated it as a terrorist organization. The trial exposes the intensifying conflicts between opposing political ideologies in Europe.

Seven people have gone on trial in Dresden, eastern Germany, charged with being members or supporters of a militant, criminal left-wing extremist group, Antifa Ost - also known as the 'hammer gang'.

Earlier this month the United States designated Antifa Ost as a terrorist organization, along with several other far-left European groups.

German prosecutors say the group, founded in late 2017 or early 2018, carried out violent attacks on people they considered to be part of the right-wing scene. The attacks took place in Germany and in the Hungarian capital Budapest.

The six men and one woman who are on trial face charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, and property damage.

They have been named only as Henry A, Tobias E, Johann G, Thomas J, Melissa K, Paul M and Julian W, in line with German privacy laws.

According to prosecutors, the attacks, which went on for several years, were prepared for intensively and included, for example, spying on the targets in advance. In several cases victims were severely injured with blows from a hammer and batons.

One of the seven defendants, Johann G, is charged with having a prominent role in the group, accused of having planned the attacks and recruited members. Another defendant, Paul M, organized combat training for the group.

In one attack, in January 2019, Johann G, Tobias E and others are alleged to have attacked four people at Germany's Dessau-Rosslau train station who were on their way back from a rally in Magdeburg, marking the anniversary of the World War Two bombing of the city.

The defendants are accused of striking the victims on the head with heavy tools, including a hammer and an iron bar. Prosecutors say they continued to inflict life-threatening blows and kicks, even after their victims had been knocked to the ground.

Johann G and Paul M are also accused of having taken part in attacks in Budapest in February 2023.

At that time, right-wing extremists from all over Europe had gathered in Budapest for a so-called Day of Honour to commemorate the attempted breakout of the German Wehrmacht, the Waffen-SS, and their Hungarian collaborators from the city besieged by the Red Army.

Johann G and Paul M are charged with taking part in several attacks, hitting and beating right-wing activists with batons, pepper spray, and a hammer. One of the victims received at least 15 blows, mainly to the head.

The designation of Antifa Ost as a terrorist group in the US earlier this month is part of a crackdown on extreme-left activists led by President Donald Trump. This designation freezes any assets they may have in the US and makes it a crime to provide material support to them.

The move drew praise from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which called for the German government to follow suit in classifying Antifa as a terrorist organization.

Stephan Brandner from the AfD stated that combating all forms of extremism is essential, highlighting the need for government action against groups like Antifa.

The German foreign ministry acknowledged the US decision and emphasized the complex dynamics surrounding extremist groups in Europe.