A wave of fake anti-military posters imitating Bundeswehr ads has appeared in cities across Germany, prompting police investigations. The posters, designed to look like official army recruitment ads, instead display hostile, politically charged messages targeting the military.
One reads, “Nazis. Bullets. Isolated cases,” while another declares, “Hanging out with Nazi preppers? No to Veterans Day.” The posters were produced by the “Antimilitarist Action Network,” the youth wing of the German Peace Society, which launched a nationwide campaign of “adbusting” stunts aimed at disrupting Germany’s first official Veterans Day.
The campaign was timed to coincide with Sunday’s celebrations in an apparent effort to delegitimise the commemoration of military service. According to local media, the fake posters were spotted in Freiburg, Stralsund, Dresden, and over two dozen other cities. Police in Dresden have confiscated around 20 posters and launched an investigation on suspicion of a politically motivated offence.
“Our adbustings expose these grassroots festivals for what they are: propaganda for wartime readiness and rearmament,” a group spokesperson said — revealing the group’s broader ideological aim to stigmatise Germany’s armed forces.
Veterans Day, which will now be observed annually, is intended to honour the service and sacrifices of German soldiers. But far-left critics have denounced the event as “militaristic” — a fringe view increasingly promoted by activist networks hostile to the Bundeswehr and Germany’s national defence.
