2022 German coup d'état plot
On 7 December 2022, 25 members of a suspected far-right terrorist group were arrested for allegedly planning a coup d'état in Germany. The group, called Patriotic Union (German: Patriotische Union), which was led by a Council (German: Rat), was a part of the German far-right extremist Reichsbürger movement. The group aimed to re-establish a monarchist government in Germany in the tradition of the German Reich, with the government being similar to the German Empire. The group allegedly wanted to provoke chaos and a civil war in Germany so that it could take power.
| 2022 German coup d'état plot | |||
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| Part of the Reichsbürger movement | |||
The Reichstag, location of the Bundestag in Berlin, the main target of the alleged coup plot | |||
| Date | 7 December 2022 | ||
| Goals | Removal of the current federal German government and establishment of a monarchy modelled on the German Empire | ||
| Resulted in | Plot foiled, arrests of alleged conspirators including Heinrich Prinz Reuss and Birgit Malsack-Winkemann | ||
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| Units involved | |||
Federal Criminal Police Office | |||
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| Arrested | 25 | ||
Around 5,000 police officers, including 1,500 special forces officers, searched 130 locations throughout Germany and made several arrests, including Heinrich Prinz Reuss, a descendant of the former aristocratic House of Reuß, as well as former Alternative for Germany (AfD) MP Birgit Malsack-Winkemann. The group also included active military and police personnel. The operation against the group is considered to be the largest in Germany's history. The public prosecutor general, Peter Frank, declared the group to be a terrorist organisation.
In December 2023, charges of founding, joining, and supporting a terrorist organization were announced against 27 conspirators. A total of 69 people are considered defendants in the case.