Germany detains two over violence at Eritrean community festivals

German police have detained two suspected members of a group that is accused of using violence at community festivals in western Germany with the aim of overthrowing the Eritrean government. 

The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office said that the pair - one Eritrean and one German national - are accused of membership of a domestic terrorist organization. They are to be brought before the investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, who will rule on pre-trial detention.

Prosecutors said the stated goal of the "Brigade N'Hamedu Germany" is to overthrow the authoritarian government in Eritrea.

In Germany, the group is accused of carrying out violence at events held by alleged supporters of the Eritrean government in the western city of Giessen in the summers of 2022 and 2023, as well as a seminar held by an Eritrean association in Stuttgart in September 2023. 

"In doing so, the members of the organization regarded violence against German state institutions and representatives of state authority - for example, police officers deployed to protect the events - as a legitimate means," the prosecutor's office said.

The Giessen festivals were organized by the Central Council of Eritreans in Germany, which critics accuse of spreading propaganda for the Eritrean government, an allegation the organizers deny.

The country on the Horn of Africa, with around 4 million inhabitants, is marked by systematic repression, violence and the denial of basic human rights.

According to human rights organizations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the authoritarian government of President Isaias Afwerki suppresses the population through forced labour, compulsory military service and restrictions on freedom of expression, religion and the press.

There are also reports of large-scale massacres, extrajudicial killings and sexual violence by security forces. The government of the one-party state, in which no elections are held, rejects the allegations as politically motivated.

The two detained men are alleged to have played a key role in building up the structures of Brigade N'Hamedu Germany and in organizing the violent actions.

The Eritrean national reportedly served as secretary-general for a period, while the German man was the group's first chairman.

In connection with the investigation into the group, German police searched 19 properties in March 2025 across the country, with other raids in Denmark.

At the time, 200 officers from the Federal Criminal Police Office and state police forces were deployed, but no arrests were made.