Germany's defense minister has disbanded a unit of the country's elite commando force, known as the KSK, following an official report earlier this year that found far-right extremism within its ranks.
Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said the KSK had created a"wall of secrecy" around itself and she told thenewspaper on Tuesday that the elite force had developed a"toxic leadership culture" and"cannot continue to exist in its present form."
German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and the Inspector General of the German Armed Forces Bundeswehr Eberhard Zorn inspect the guard of honour during a swearing-in ceremony of German Bundeswehr soldiers at the Bendlerblock in Berlin, last July.Some of the 70 soldiers from the disbanded company would be reassigned to one of the KSK's three other combat companies, Kramp-Karrenbauer said.However, Kramp-Karrenbauer insisted"we need the KSK.
In May, investigators discovered Nazi memorabilia, weapons and explosives on the property of a sergeant major assigned to the KSK, according to Deutsche Press-Agentur.
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