A neo-Nazi ‘fight club’ has been discovered in operation at a Berlin sports centre.
The right-wing martial arts group was discovered holding fight sessions at the Rennbahn sports facility in the area of Weissensee in the German capital Berlin without the permission or knowledge of the local authorities, according to reports.
The group has reportedly been carrying out martial arts training sessions on the pitch, involving a number of different postures and fighting techniques.
However, although apparently innocent at first glance, the men were seen wearing T-shirts by Greifvogel Wear, considered a far-right fashion label, with the inscription ‘Kampf der Nibelungen’, a prominent far-right combat sports scene in Europe.
Kampf der Nibelungen states on its website. “At all times it was fighters who defended their clan, their tribe, their homeland.”
Last year, supporters from various far-right organisations and parties gathered at the Pankow district-run sports complex to stage a protest.
(Google Maps/Newsflash)
While the district council said they had no knowledge of such training sessions taking place, the Senate of Berlin said they are aware that “right-wing extremists train sporadically at the Rennbahn sports facility in Weissensee”, according to a report by left-wing MPs Niklas Schrader and Ferat Kocak, who added that the group has no right to use the facilities.
Due to strict privacy laws in Germany, the Senate has not provided any information on the persons involved with the group, however, Kocak believes more needs to be done to understand the extent of the problem.
The MP said: “Despite legitimate concerns about personal rights, anonymous information would be possible and important to be able to assess the scope of the problem.”
Overall, the Senate has remained vague in its statements, giving the impression they were not sufficiently aware of the problem of the right-wing martial arts scene in the city.
Local media said officials do not know how frequently the group’s training sessions take place, and it is unclear if they are under investigation by the Berlin police.
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Story By: Lee Bullen, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
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