Daniel Halemba (born 2001) is a German politician and member of the
Alternative for Germany
Alternative for Germany (, AfD, ) is a Far-right politics in Germany (1945–present), far-right,Far-right:
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* Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative p ...
(AfD) party.
Early life and education
Daniel Halemba was born in
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located today mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic. The area is predominantly known for its heav ...
in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
in 2001.
When he was three years old, his parents moved to
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
before eventually settling in
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia (, ) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia. It consists of nine districts and 308 municipalities (including three cities).
History
After ...
. He is a university student studying business law.
Investigation and arrest
On 14 September 2023, the police searched a house of the fraternity, of which Halemba was a member, and seized evidence. The search was part of an ongoing investigation into the organization for use of banned symbols and incitement to hatred after neighbors had reported hearing "
Sieg Heil
The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute, or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. The salute is performed by extending the right arm from the shoulder into the air with a straightened han ...
" shouted from the home. Halemba described the warrant as "totally lawless".
Katrin Ebner-Steiner has claimed the house-search was politically motivated, with the aim of harming the AfD.
On 8 October 2023, Halemba was elected to the
Bavarian State Parliament in the
2023 Bavarian state election. On 27 October, three days before the constituent session, an arrest-warrant was issued against him. Since the investigations had already taken place before the constituent session of the state parliament, Halemba was not allowed political immunity afterwards. Halemba's defense lawyer, the former AfD politician , said he has applied for a detention review of the arrest warrant at the . Initially, the arrest warrant could not be executed because Halemba could not be found. The
Bavarian Ministry of the Interior
The Bavarian Ministry of the Interior, Sport and Integration () is the interior ministry of Bavaria. It is headquartered in Munich, and was established on November 21, 1806 as the ''Departement des Innern''. The first Minister of the Interior wa ...
told
BR24
BR24 is a cross-platform news brand of German public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) which is at the same time a news website, a 24/7 news radio station
Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related ...
on October 28, 2023 that the search for Halemba was underway at full speed. Halemba was arrested on the morning of October 30, 2023 in
Kirchheim unter Teck
Kirchheim unter Teck (, ; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Kircha'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in the Esslingen (district), district of Esslingen. It is located on the small river Lauter (Neckar), Lauter, a tributary of the Neckar. It i ...
on suspicion of incitement to hatred and the use of signs of anti-constitutional organizations.
After his arrest, Halemba successfully retained his membership in AfD, as part of a settlement with party leadership.
References
Further reading
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Living people
2001 births
Members of the Landtag of Bavaria
Alternative for Germany politicians
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