Berlin – Three weeks ago, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) imposed a ban on Hamas and the Samidoun network. Both organizations strive for the destruction of the State of Israel. Much too late, a police operation in four federal states against the Jew-haters is finally taking place.
At 6 a.m. sharp on Thursday morning, police units struck in the federal states of Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, North Rhine-Westphalia and the capital – a concerted action.
In Berlin alone, eleven properties were searched, including on Mainzer Strasse in Neukölln and on Dörpfeldstrasse in Adlershof.
Also the aim of the campaign: objects on Johannisthaler Chaussee, Graefestraße, Osloer Straße, Admiralsstraße, Joachim-Gottschalk-Weg, Paris Commune Street, Gitschiner Straße and Libauer Straße.
Two private apartments are being searched in Bochum and Münster (North Rhine-Westphalia). This is said to be a sub-organization that collects donations for Hamas.
In addition to officers from the State Police responsible for political crimes, riot police and elite police officers from the Special Operations Command (SEK) are involved in the secret operation – a total of 350 officers.
Berlin police spokeswoman Anja Dierschke confirmed the operation upon request. This is a request for administrative assistance from the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
The aim is to secure documents, hard drives and other evidence that could be helpful in clearing up the radical networks.
An investigator: “Too much time has passed since the ban, so no useful findings are likely to be made.” According to the official, professionals first had the raids carried out and then announced the ban. A failure of politics.
This would have given the extremists enough time to make incriminating material disappear. The danger for the colleagues deployed in the fight against terror is still high – and the element of surprise is gone.
The operation is still ongoing and results are not expected before the afternoon hours.