Portugal arrests 6 people linked to a far-right group, seizing explosives and weapons
LISBON (AP) — Portuguese authorities arrested six people linked to a far-right group with “big capabilities” to conduct some action “of a certain dimension” and seized explosive material and several firearms, police said Tuesday.
The detainees are believed to belong to the so-called Movimento Armilar Lusitano (MAL), which sought to establish itself as a political movement supported by an armed militia, according to a police statement.
“They were arming themselves, they were recruiting people, they were undergoing training, gaining tactical capability, to perform some kind of action, we don’t know what, but something likely on their horizon,” said Manuela Santos, head of counterterrorism taskforce, in a press conference.
The detainees are suspected of crimes related to terrorist actions, discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence, and possession of prohibited weapons, police added. The investigation tracked online movements of several members of the group and detected indicators of extreme far-right nationalist views, anti-system ideology and incitement to hatred and violence against migrants and refugees.
Authorities seized explosives, detonators, rounds of ammunition, firearms — some built with 3D printers, which made them easier to conceal — and knives in the operation, police said.
MAL was formed in 2018 out of the remnants of several defunct far-right groups. It gained ground during the pandemic with its violent anti-system ideology. The police confirmed that one of the six detainees was a member of a police force, but did not say whether that person was an officer or a civilian.
According to Santos, Portuguese authorities found some similarities with a group dismantled in Germany in December 2022, “whose aim was to attempt against democratic institutions, to subvert the rule of law through violence.”
More than two dozen people were arrested in Germany in December 2022 for planning to topple the government as part of the so-called “Reich Citizens” movement. Several trials are now underway, including one in Frankfurt, where the nine defendants include a self-styled prince and a former far-right lawmaker.
The suspects will appear before a judge later in the day, who will decide whether they will be charged or what measures will be taken.
“We are dealing with a very serious phenomenon, disruptive and with increasing criminal and social relevance,” said Luis Neves, general director of Portuguese Judiciary Police. “We witness increasingly more speeches of this nature and the recruitment of young layers of the population through the internet.”
Across Europs, far-right sentiment is surging. In recent years, support for anti-immigration parties has soared in countries including the Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Italy and France. In Portugal, Chega, which means “Enough” came second in recent parliamentary elections and now forms the official opposition.
By HELENA ALVES and TERESA MEDRANO
