Samantha Mason

This story is not getting enough attention, even though it is a dark portent of the political repression on the horizon all around the NATO bloc. Five activists who damaged an Elbit Systems site in Ulm, Germany, are facing harsher treatment than the Reichsbürger, a far-right group accused of attempting to overthrow the German state by force. The two trials are being held in the same building. The Ulm5 are held in a maximum-security prison, marched into the courtroom in handcuffs, and seated behind bulletproof glass two meters tall. On day one, the judge switched off the microphones of the defence’s legal team, and has since repeatedly refused to hear their evidence and expert witnesses, while rejecting a motion for an independent stenographer to keep a record of the proceedings. The only written record of the trial is the judge's. Meanwhile, the Ulm5 all remain in prolonged detention — with stints in solitary confinement. The prosecution is seeking to argue that the attack was antisemitic in nature, as Elbit Systems is a “Jewish-owned company” and therefore the “baby killers” graffiti drawn by the activists amounts to blood libel. The case sets a chilling precedent for any actions taken against German militarism, and no doubt forms part of a wider arc of repression that now extends from Britain to Italy. That is why the activists’ call for international solidarity and support is so urgent.