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Four held on suspicion of being members of outlawed UK neo-nazi group Army members held on suspicion of belonging to banned UK neo-Nazi group
(35 minutes later)
Four men from across the UK have been arrested on suspicion of being members of the recently banned neo-nazi group National Action. Four serving members of the British army have been arrested on suspicion of being members of the recently banned neo-Nazi group National Action.
A 22-year-old from Birmingham, a 32-year-old from Powys, a 24-year-old from Ipswich and a 24-year-old from Northampton, have been arrested under the Terrorism Act on suspicion of being a member of a proscribed organisation, West Midlands police said. A 22-year-old from Birmingham, a 32-year-old from Powys, a 24-year-old from Ipswich and a 24-year-old from Northampton have been arrested under the Terrorism Act on suspicion of being members of a proscribed organisation, West Midlands police said.
The men are being held at a police station in the West Midlands and a number of properties are being searched in connection with the arrests. An army spokeswoman confirmed to the Guardian that serving members were among those arrested.
A statement from WMP said: “The arrests were pre-planned and intelligence-led; there was no threat to the public’s safety.” She said: “We can confirm that a number of serving members of the army have been arrested under the Terrorism Act for being associated with a proscribed far-right group. These arrests are the consequence of a Home Office police force-led operation supported by the army. This is now the subject of a civilian police investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further.”
The arrests were carried out with West Midlands counter-terrorism unit in conjunction with the Wales extremism counter-terrorism unit and the East Midlands CTIU. All four are being held at a police station in the West Midlands and a number of properties are being searched in connection with the arrests.
National Action, an antisemitic white supremacist group, was proscribed as a terrorist organisation in December by the home secretary. The group, which lauded the murder of the Labour MP Jo Cox, held demonstrations in UK cities with banners saying “Hitler was right”. A statement from West Midlands police said: “The arrests were pre-planned and intelligence-led; there was no threat to the public’s safety.”
The slogan on its former website was “Death to traitors, freedom for Britain,” which was the only statement given in court by Cox’s murderer, Thomas Mair. The arrests were carried out with West Midlands counter-terrorism unit in conjunction with units from Wales and the east Midlands.
The group has been filmed telling supporters about “the disease of international Jewry” and that “when the time comes they’ll be in the chambers”, and has also been filmed training supporters in hand-to-hand combat. National Action, an antisemitic white supremacist group, was proscribed as a terrorist organisation in December by the home secretary. Amber Rudd said the group had no place in British society. “I am clear that the safety and security of our families, communities and country comes first,” she said. “So today I am taking action to proscribe the neo-Nazi group National Action. This will mean that being a member of, or inviting support for, this organisation will be a criminal offence.
“National Action is a racist, antisemitic and homophobic organisation which stirs up hatred, glorifies violence and promotes a vile ideology, and I will not stand for it. It has absolutely no place in a Britain that works for everyone.”