Portuguese police arrested 37 individuals suspected of being part of a far-right group responsible for hate crimes. The operation, involving 300 officers, uncovered weapons and neo-Nazi propaganda. The group’s leader, Mario Machado, is already imprisoned. Concerns rise amid Portugal’s growing far-right political influence. n a sweeping operation, Portuguese authorities detained 37 individuals allegedly affiliated with an ultra-right group charged with hate crimes. The police mobilized 300 officers for the crackdown, which exposed weapons caches and neo-Nazi materials. The group, known as ‘1143’, harks back to the era when Portugal was established as a kingdom. Its leader, Mario Machado, is serving time for racial discrimination and related offenses. In a previous operation, police apprehended suspected neo-Nazis linked to illegal militia activities.
via devidscourse: Portugal’s Far-Right Crackdown: Neo-Nazi Group Dismantled
siehe auch: PJ lead megaoperation against 1143 Neo-Nazi group Group suspected of crimes of violence and hatred against immigrants. PJ judicial police have launched an operation this morning, from north to south of the country, to combat hate crimes committed against immigrants. SIC Notícias and CNN Portugal explain that the operation is essentially targeted at members of the Neo-Nazi group 1143, whose ‘leader’ Mário Machado is currently serving jail time for crimes of hatred (on this occasion against female left-wingers). The operation started at 7am and is focused on exercising more than 30 arrest warrants. It is being conducted by the PJ’s Counterterrorism Unit. CNN Portugal particularly cites the targeting of “immigrants from Islamic countries” by 1143 – suggesting that Mário Machado has been ‘passing instructions’ to his group from prison. A source close to the process has also told Lusa that Machado’s cell was searched this morning.
siehe dazu auch: Grupo 1143: A Far Right Football Club Revived as Anti-Muslim Activists. In January, Portuguese news outlets reported on the shocking news that a new far-right group with ties to neo-fascists and neo-Nazis, “Grupo 1143” (Group 1143) planned an “Against the Islamization of Europe” march with tiki torches through a diverse central Lisbon neighborhood. Online, promoters of the event were raising money to “buy 40 firecrackers” and “five bottles of liquid paraffin,” as well as “40 maritime green and red flares.” This provoked a backlash from local politicians, anti-fascist groups, and anti-racist NGOs that called for the march to be canceled. (At the time of publishing, Lisbon City Hall has canceled the march originally proposed to be held at the Praça Martim Moniz, but organizers say they will still march elsewhere in the city at the same time.) An investigation by the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) into “Grupo 1143” (Group 1143), resuscitated by infamous Portuguese neo-Nazi Mario Machado in late 2023 and the organizers of the march, finds that there are reasons to worry about whether an event such as the one originally planned for February 3 might descend into violence. This is due in part to the membership, which includes amongst its ranks neo-Nazis, skinheads, and historical ties to the violent neo-Nazi skinhead group, Portuguese Hammerskins, through Machado himself. In addition, Grupo 1143’s efforts to leave tags with references to Nazism, and overt harassment of minorities, implies that a demonstration in one of Lisbon’s most multicultural districts would be at least provocative. Grupo 1143 had long been a Portuguese ultras sports group, known for their fanatical team support. Such outfits are prominent in Europe, with Grupo 1143 having explicit ties to the Portuguese far right, and more specifically, the Portuguese Hammerskins, the most violent skinhead group in Portugal in recent decades. Originally formed in 2003, after ultra football culture was spread through Portugal, by a dissident from the Juventude Leonina (Juve Leo) ultras, the group became a faction within the larger Juve Leo club. The group would infamously be led by Machado, who first came into contact with far-right ideology when attending football matches with the Juve Leo, and consisted of a significant amount of “carecas” (skinheads) as members, all of whom were under 30 years old.