The Hamburg Public Prosecutor’s Office is bringing charges against two men who are said to have approved of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine on social networks. A 31-year-old “follower of a pro-Russian national-Bolshevik ideology” has set up a telegram channel to spread his political ideas, the agency said. The name and logo of the channel were based on an ultra-nationalist Russian party.
The 31-year-old published posts there and on other networks in which he approved of the war and used the Russian propaganda symbol “Z”. He is also said to have kept two banned knives in his apartment, which is why he is also accused of a weapons violation.
The second accused, a 34-year-old, is said to have provided assistance three times, for example by adding a “Z” to the Telegram channel and making articles with the symbol available to the 31-year-old. In Germany, the use of the symbol in a corresponding context is punishable because it represents the approval of a war of aggression that violates international law. The 31-year-old has been in custody since early August. The Hamburg Regional Court must now decide on the charges.