German police raid extremists

FRANKFURT, March 29 (JTA) — German police have confiscated a cache of weapons in raids on the homes of suspected right-wing extremists. The raids were conducted in connection with investigations related to the desecrations of Jewish cemeteries. Police said one of the pistols they found was used in an attack on a Turkish fast-food restaurant in 1996. The supplier of the confiscated weapons is a 42-year-old man from the area of Kaiserslautern. Officials say his customers face charges of illegal possession of weapons and explosives as well as violations of the German arms control law. Several of the weapons owners belong to an organization called Stahlhelm, or Steel Helmet, which participants claim is dedicated to the maintenance of military traditions. Intelligence officials say the group propagates racist and anti-Semitic ideology.