Judges bail three German leftists held for fire-bombing

Europe News

Nov 28, 2007, 15:23 GMT

Karlsruhe, Germany - Three leftist radicals accused of planting incendiary devices under German army trucks were granted bail Wednesday by federal judges who ruled they were not terrorists. The finding by the German High Court in Karlsruhe sharply reduced the powers of federal security agencies against what has been dubbed 'terrorism lite.' The radicals are believed to be leading members of the Militant Groups (MG), which has been setting parked vehicles on fire and throwing petrol bombs at government offices in the Berlin area for the past six years. The court ruled that they could only be accused of crimes to property, not terrorism, because the attacks were not liable to destabilize the government. Germany adopted sweeping powers against terrorism when a leftist group, the Red Army Faction, killed or kidnapped public officials and hijacked planes 30 years ago. Most of the gang were given life terms, since paroled, and the RAF petered out in the 1990s. More than 20 claims of responsibility from MG, usually essays several pages long, have voiced hatred for 'German imperialism,' the G8 swine' and 'capitalist barbarity.' This year, more than 100 vehicles in Berlin have been destroyed in the depths of the night, usually by leaving flaming torches under them. MG has only claimed a few of the attacks. Directing bail for the trio, judges said the evidence against them was strong, but precautions could be taken to prevent them fleeing the country before they go on trial. Far leftists had rallied behind the trio, aged 35 to 46, hailing them as martyrs. They were detained in August for failed bids to burn three army trucks near Berlin in May during the run-up to a German-hosted Group of Eight (G8) summit. The leftists call the G8 'imperialist.' The finding that low-level attacks which do not kill are not legally terrorism is expected to deprive German federal police of their previous power to investigate MG and arrest suspects before they strike. State police may have to take over the task, and would only be able to arrest suspects after they had mounted attacks. © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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