Following an alleged arson attack on an alternative housing project in Cottbus, police are investigating on suspicion of attempted murder. Authorities say they believe the two suspects come from the far-right spectrum, a spokesperson said. Last year there had already been several attacks using pyrotechnics targeting the housing project “Zelle 79”.
The officers were alerted in the early hours of Thursday. Unknown individuals hurled several bottles filled with flammable liquids at the building’s facade, police stated. The officers were able to extinguish a small fire near the housing project. No one was injured.
The arson attack occurred during the Christopher Street Day (CSD) action weeks in Cottbus. The residents of the housing project hung a rainbow flag and a CSD poster on the house reading: “Dear residents of Cottbus, we still gender!” The poster criticizes that the Cottbus City Council recently approved an AfD motion to ban gender-inclusive language in the administration, with support from parts of the CDU. Lukas Pellio, spokesperson for the Safe Places initiative, which fights against right-wing extremism in the city, said: “This arson attack is an attack on queer life in Cottbus. It once again shows the confidence and the unscrupulousness with which the right-wing scene operates in Cottbus.”
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Suspects believed to be 15 to 20 years old
According to initial witness accounts, investigators say two men were seen at the scene, estimated to be about 15 to 20 years old and dressed in black. One wore a tattoo on his left forearm and a black-and-white striped balaclava; the other wore a long-sleeve shirt with white lettering on the chest.
Already last year, shortly before the CSD, a suspected far-right arson attack was carried out at the queer center Regenbogenkombinat (TheColu.mn reported).
Cottbus is regarded as a center of right-wing extremism
The city of Cottbus — the center of the Niederlausitz region — is regarded as a focal point of right-wing extremism in Brandenburg. In the spring, an anti-Semitic inscription and a black swastika were smeared on the synagogue in the pedestrian zone of the city. In the hallway of another alternative housing project, a blazing torch was thrown. There were threats, including to the apartment of a student pastor who campaigns against right-wing extremism. At the end of April, several hundred people demonstrated in Cottbus against right-wing violence. In the federal election in February 2025, the far-right AfD won 39 percent of the votes in the city and was by far the strongest party; the equally queer-hostile BSW, which had recently been disinvited from several CSDs, earned around twelve percent.
Last year there were already alleged attacks on the housing project “Zelle 79.” Just before New Year’s Eve, an attempt was made to blow the door open with a firecracker. In another case, pyrotechnics were fired at the house, a police spokesperson said.
