German Politician Arrested for Nazi Salute Controversy

• Daniel Halemba, 22, a member of AfD, arrested for displaying Nazi symbols.
• Controversy arose from repeated “Sieg Heil” chants at his fraternity’s headquarters.
• Halemba claimed a “lawless arrest warrant,” and his lawyer denied the allegations.

Daniel Halemba, a 22-year-old member of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, has been taken into custody following accusations of displaying Nazi symbols.

The controversy stemmed from repeated instances of the banned phrase “Sieg Heil” emanating from the headquarters of the “Tuetonia Prag” student fraternity, to which Halemba belongs.

His arrest came just hours before he was set to acquire parliamentary immunity as a newly elected member of the Bavarian parliament.

Police conducted a raid on the fraternity’s premises and discovered various Nazi symbols. This arrest is part of an ongoing investigation into sedition and the possession of prohibited symbols, as Nazi iconography is illegal in Germany.

Halemba’s apprehension comes in the wake of the AfD’s historic election success in Bavaria, where they are now the largest opposition party in the state, with 32 members elected.

“They want to arrest me … using a totally lawless arrest warrant,” Mr. Halemba said in a video posted to social media before his arrest.

His lawyer, Dubravko Mandic, said the allegations against his client had “no truth”.

Katrin Ebner-Steiner, who leads the AfD in the Bavarian parliament, criticized what she characterized as a “politically driven” legal action.

The AfD has seen a surge in electoral success in recent months, securing the third position in Bavaria’s recent election and the second position in Hesse, an eastern state.

Nationally, the party consistently ranks as the second-largest in polls. Germany’s upcoming federal election is scheduled for 2025.

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