On Wednesday, police across Germany, Poland, and Spain carried out coordinated raids against the far-right publishing house Der Schelm, following investigations into its distribution of antisemitic books and writings from the World War II era. This action was reported by the German public broadcaster rbb, which indicated that the publishing house has been active in promoting extremist literature for at least ten years. The searches revealed bank accounts associated with the publishing house in several European countries, including Czechia.

The raids took place in five German federal states, including Bavaria and Saxony, while in Poland, the police searched a printing facility, and in Spain, they targeted a warehouse and corporate premises. Der Schelm is reportedly linked to a well-known far-right extremist from Brandenburg and his wife, the former of whom has been serving a prison sentence since last year for incitement to hatred. The operations are part of a broader attempt to clamp down on extremist literature that is illegal under the countries' laws against incitement.

According to the spokesperson for the Karlsruhe public prosecutor's office, the raids are directly tied to individuals facing charges related to the illegal publication of materials that incite hatred. The law has reportedly been violated on 488 occasions, involving the production, distribution, and advertising of such publications, which raises concerns about the growing influence of far-right extremism in Europe and the ongoing efforts to combat it.