SHARE
COPY LINK

CRIME

Prosecutors pursue charges against Holocaust denying Catholic bishop

Prosecutors in the Bavarian city of Regensburg have submitted a request to press charges against the controversial Catholic bishop Richard Williamson for inciting hatred by denying the Holocaust.

Prosecutors pursue charges against Holocaust denying Catholic bishop
Photo: DPA

A judge will now decide if expedited legal proceedings against the member of the ultraconservative Society of St. Pius X go forward. The process can only be used when there is no hearing required and the defendant does not face time in jail.

“It’s heading in the direction of a fine,” said Johann Plöd, the president of the Regensburg district court.

One year ago, Williamson unleashed a storm of outrage by claiming the Nazis didn’t murder Jews in gas chambers and that only 200,000 to 300,000 Jewish people had been killed in concentration camps. Because he made his comments to Swedish television while at a Pius brotherhood seminary in Zaitzkofen, Bavaria, the bishop can face criminal charges in Germany.

Prosecutors started their investigation into the incident January, however, it has been hampered by the refusal of Swedish officials to compel the TV journalist to testify as a witness.

The controversy surrounding Williamson engulfed the entire Catholic Church at the beginning of the year after Pope Benedict XVI lifted his excommunication along with that of three other bishops from the Society of St. Pius X. The conservative religious sect rejects the Vatican’s teaching on religious freedom and pluralism, including the idea that Jews are the “older brothers” of Christians.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

BUSINESS

Elon Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory

Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla's factory near Berlin to lend his workers "support" after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.

Elon Musk visits Tesla's sabotage-hit German factory

The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing “eco-terrorists” of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.

With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”

The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).

READ ALSO: Far-left group claims ‘sabotage’ on Tesla’s German factory

Musk had said then that the attack was “extremely dumb”, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.

A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.

Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.

Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.

Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.

But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.

After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

SHOW COMMENTS