German Antifa group is a ‘terrorist’ organization, US declares

The U.S. on Thursday designated a German far-left group as a “foreign terrorist organization.”

“Antifa Ost conducted numerous attacks against individuals it perceives as ‘fascists’ or part of the ‘right-wing scene’ in Germany between 2018 and 2023 and is accused of having conducted a series of attacks in Budapest in mid-February 2023,” according to the U.S. State Department.

Commonly known as the Hammerbande (hammer gang), the German far-left group is accused of attacking and severely injuring several people in the Hungarian capital in February 2023. Some of the victims were linked to the far right.

The attacks took place around the time of a neo-Nazi gathering, and the perpetrators were reported to have used metal bars and hammers.

Legal proceedings are ongoing in both Germany and Hungary.

The State Department’s move comes just days after populist-nationalist Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán visited his close ally, U.S. President Donald Trump, in Washington.

The designation also follows Trump’s September executive order labeling Antifa a domestic terrorist organization in the U.S. Orbán later said he would follow “the American example” and classify Antifa as a terrorist organization in Hungary.