Anti-Communism and support for Israel were the reasons cited by the anarchist “Commando Second June” group for bombing the Axel Springer publishing plant in Hamburg last Friday in which 17 persons were injured, three seriously.
An anonymous letter received Monday by the German publisher warned of further terrorist acts and demanded that the Springer newspapers “discontinue their incitement against freedom movements in the third world, especially against the Arab peoples fighting for the liberation of Palestine” and that “Springer cease his propagandistic and material support of Zionism and the imperialistic policies of the ruling groups in Israel.”
Axel Springer, one of the leading German publishers, is well known for his efforts to reconcile the German and Israeli peoples since World War II. He expressed shock but not surprise at the bombing. The “Commando Second June” is a sub-group of the Red Army Faction (RAF), a name adopted by the anarchist Baader-Meinhof group. June 2 refers to the date in 1967 when a student was killed in Berlin during demonstrations against a visit by the Shah of Iran.
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