From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Acquittal of alleged neo-Nazi sparks outrage in Austria; court said to wish him happy birthday
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The acquittal of an alleged neo-Nazi accused of displaying Nazi-inspired symbols and possessing Nazi propaganda has caused an uproar in Austria, with critics denouncing a “scandal of the highest order.”
A court in Vienna on Friday convicted the 42-year-old, an alleged member of the far-right Unsterblich (Immortal) group, of carrying a knife and handed him a three-month suspended sentence.
But the defendant, who was not named, was cleared on charges of repeatedly wearing clothing bearing illegal Nazi symbols at sporting events and possessing Nazi propaganda material.
The Mauthausen Committee of Austria, a Holocaust remembrance organization, criticizes the verdict and reports that the court has been overly cordial with the defendant, wishing him happy birthday during the proceedings.
“The conduct of the proceedings and the acquittal are a scandal of the highest order,” says Willi Mernyi, chair of the association.
Prosecutors in Vienna confirm to AFP that they launched an appeal against the verdict.
According to Austrian news agency APA, the defendant had previously been convicted in 2022 over banned Nazi symbols and even his lawyer was expecting another conviction.
Austria has long grappled with a strong far-right movement, ranging from parliamentary parties to informal neo-Nazi networks and extremist soccer hooligan groups.
The extreme-right Freedom Party, founded by former Nazis, topped the polls in legislative elections held in 2024, though it failed to find partners to govern.
“It is obvious that the shift to the right has reached parts of the justice system,” Mernyi says, adding that “effective countermeasures are urgently needed.”
The defendant was charged as part of an investigation into alleged members of Unsterblich, a far-right network associated with the Austria Wien football club.
Several members of the group were searched in 2023 in Vienna and Lower Austria on allegations of displaying banned Nazi symbols.
Austria Wien banned the group in 2013 over racist chants and Hitler salutes.
The Times of Israel Community.