Hundreds of German police officers carried out on Wednesday raids against suspected Islamist extremists in several states, with the aim of confiscating possessions belonging to three now banned salafists groups.

The country’s Interior Ministry confirmed that in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse alone, officers targeted 20 houses thought to belong to people connected to Salafist groups – a radical branch of Islam.

The targeted organisations are “DawaFFM” and “Islamische Audios”, as well as “An-Nussrah”, which is part of the “Millatu Ibrahim” group that was banned in June 2012, a ministry statement said. All three were on Wednesday made illegal.

“Salafism, when carried out similar to that of the banned grounds, is not in accordance with our democratic constitution,” said Friedrich. He added that the three groups used aggression to change society. They tend to hold the Sharia – Islamic law – above German law.

The existence of the banned groups, Friedrich said, meant protecting the millions of other peaceful Muslims that lived in the country. “They must not suffer from carefully planned conflict carried out by extremists,” he added.

In 2012, there were around 4,500 Salafists in Germany. In 2011 this figure stood at 3,800 – a rise which has left security officials concerned.

Salafism is a religious, political Islamic movement in which its followers often reject the principles of liberal western democracy.

[adrotate banner=”28″]