Extremist crimes spike in Germany

A record number of right-wing extremist crimes were reported to police in Germany. At least 18,000 cases were reported in 2006, a 14 percent increase over the previous year, according to Berlin’s Tagesspiegel newspaper. This was a marked increase from 2004 as well, when 12,553 cases were reported. The new statistics, compiled by the Federal Office of Criminal Investigation, may change slightly when
the Federal Interior Ministry releases them officially. Left-wing extremist crimes rose by 9 percent to about 5,300 incidents, up from 4,898 in 2005.