German Jews warn of neo-Nazi role in poor regions

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http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/international/ticker/detail/German_Jews_warn_of_neo_Nazi_role_in_poor_regions.html?siteSect=143&sid=7083296&cKey=1158756772000

BERLIN (Reuters) - Neo-Nazi paramilitary groups have gained strong footholds in economically depressed parts of Germany and are gaining a voice through far-right political parties, Germany's top Jewish body said on Wednesday.

The National Democratic Party (NPD), which some have compared to Hitler's Nazis, won seats in a regional election in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on Sunday, sparking renewed calls for it to be banned.

The Central Council of Jews in Germany has backed these calls. But its secretary-general Stephan Kramer said a ban on the party alone would not stamp out anti-foreigner sentiment in parts of Germany where paramilitary groups or "Kameradschaften" played a dominant role.

"The neo-Nazis dominated the grass-roots level long ago," Kramer told reporters at a news conference with other anti-Nazi campaigners.