Germany to expand BND intelligence powers amid crackdown on dissent

An unprecedented rearmament effort in Germany is being accompanied by a dramatic expansion of the powers of the German foreign intelligence service (BND) and increasing internal repression.

According to German Foreign Policy, the federal government is working on a new BND law that will not only permit the use of facial recognition software, entry into homes to install spyware, and the recruitment of 16-year-olds as sources, but will also allow for the commission of targeted crimes abroad.

Furthermore, BND agents will, in the future, be able to undertake sabotage and other operational measures in addition to the espionage activities to which they have been limited until now. The term “operational follow-up measures” specifically refers to “measures that weaken the enemy’s offensive capabilities.”

These actions will apparently be permitted not only abroad but also on German soil. Accordingly, they can always be authorized “when appropriate police or military assistance cannot be provided in a timely manner or if the measure is to be implemented on the territory of a foreign state.”

The scope of the permitted sabotage measures and whether they include actions that could harm people remains unknown.

Berlin’s war preparations are accompanied by a rapid increase in repression. Last Thursday, former student Bentik S. was sentenced in Freiburg to 15 hours of community service for protesting against a “youth officer” who visited his school in February 2025.

Using two photo montages on social media, he had stated that the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) were recruiting students who could die on a new eastern front in the event of war, and that there were far-right soldiers in its ranks.

This incident proves that the Bundeswehr no longer tolerates such criticism, and anyone who voices it must fear being prosecuted and convicted.

A German cooperative bank that describes itself as “social and ecological” has decided to close all accounts of the German Communist Party (DKP) as of December 31. According to the newspapers junge Welt and Die Tageszeitung (taz), the party believes this decision is directly related to its support for solidarity projects in Cuba.

According to junge Welt, the Bochum-based financial institution GLS-Bank informed the DKP that all accounts, including the national party accounts and those of more than a dozen regional organizations, were being canceled, citing general provisions in its contracts.

The party leadership reported this incident as debanking, an increasingly common practice against political and social organizations deemed “inconvenient.”

Although the bank did not provide a specific reason, the DKP stated that the decision was related to donations for solidarity projects with Cuba.

According to the party’s federal treasurer, Klaus Leger, who spoke to junge Welt, GLS-Bank had requested detailed information in September about the fundraising campaign for the island, asking whether the funds would be transferred to Cuban state institutions and how they would reach the country.

After answering these questions, the party received no further communication until the account closure notice arrived weeks later.

The bank’s statement indicates that this measure was taken in response to “legal and regulatory requirements” and that there was no political motivation behind the decision. However, the bank refused to specify what these regulations were or which transactions had raised concerns.

Die Tageszeitung highlights that this incident has caused alarm among organizations in Germany that support Cuba. Many of these organizations hold accounts with the same institution and fear that their own financial transactions could also be blocked.

Edgar Göll, head of Netzwerk Cuba, noted that many European banks avoid any connection with the sanctioned island nation for fear of US sanctions.

This policy has led to what experts call over-compliance, an excessive adherence to regulations to mitigate risks.

This fear is not unfounded. taz recalls that banks such as BNP Paribas and Commerzbank have paid millions of dollars in fines in the past for activities related to Cuba under the US embargo, which has been in effect since 1960.

In this context, direct money transfers to the island have become extremely difficult, forcing solidarity organizations to resort to direct cash delivery or sending material aid.

The DKP insists that it has acted within the legal framework. According to Leger, donations were personally delivered to Cuba by party members, always respecting the limits set by European anti-money laundering regulations. Among the supported projects is the Rosa Luxemburgo hospital in Matanzas, where a photovoltaic plant was financed to ensure its electricity supply.

For the communist leadership, the account closures are not an isolated incident. Party chairman Patrik Köbele described the decision as a “scandal” and linked it to an increasingly hostile political climate against international solidarity with Cuba.

Meanwhile, the party is not ruling out legal action and is exploring alternative banking options to continue its activities.

In mid-November, the same bank also terminated the accounts of the organization “Anarchist black cross Dresden” (abcd). Here too, the bank stated that it closed the accounts for “reasonable cause.”

Not only the association but also associated private individuals were affected by this closure decision. Ethikbank and ING had also refused to open accounts for the association and the named individual upon request.

Abcd also views this practice of “bank account closure” as an attack on left-wing organizations in Germany.