A group of suspected neo-Nazis in Bratislava is alleged to be carrying out attacks on people. (source: Facebook/Polícia SR)
Police in Bratislava have issued a warning about a group of suspected neo-Nazis believed to be carrying out violent attacks in the Slovak capital. The announcement follows a report by the tabloid Nový Čas, which published a story and video footage allegedly showing members of the group kicking and assaulting people, including a foreigner and a man of darker complexion.
In one video, a victim can be heard crying, “Help, help, skinheads have attacked me,” as he sits on a pavement.
The group, allegedly active on social media platforms like Telegram and TikTok, reportedly shared videos of their attacks. According to the Sme daily, the group previously operated accounts under the names “White Zone” and “White Zone SS,” though these have since been deleted following media reports.
Photographs published alongside the videos purportedly show group members using far-right symbols. In one image, a man wears a T-shirt emblazoned with “Good Night Left Side,” a slogan popular among right-wing extremists. Another image, allegedly taken near Bratislava’s Patrónka bus stop, shows group members making the “OK” hand gesture, a sign co-opted by white supremacists as a symbol of white power. A Nový Čas video also features the Totenkopf emblem, a Nazi symbol associated with violence and terror.
According to the anti-fascist Instagram account antifa.slovakia, the group, which allegedly calls itself “Valhalla,” formed in late 2024. Its members are said to range from teenagers as young as 15 to individuals with alleged ties to the police – though these claims remain unverified. The group reportedly congregates in Bratislava’s historic Old Town and has been seen openly performing Nazi salutes in public spaces.
Despite the alarming reports, police claim they have received no official complaints and have not captured evidence of the group’s activities on city CCTV systems.
On Wednesday, January 29, police announced that a criminal investigation has been launched into multiple extremism-related offences.
Municipal Police in Bratislava have urged the public to immediately report any suspicious behaviour by contacting emergency lines 158 or 159.
Meanwhile, private television channel TA3 spoke to the mother of a boy who encountered the group in December.
“There were about ten, maybe fifteen of them. They were completely covered, wearing balaclavas, tight trousers and heavy boots. My son was just coming back from Eurovea (a shopping mall by the Danube, Ed.) -luckily on a scooter. If he hadn’t had it, I fear things could have ended much worse,” she told TA3.
“They met at the junction near Landererova Street. They came out from around the corner, spotted him, and started shouting racist abuse,” she added, questioning why police have not deployed officers to the locations linked to the group’s activity.
Sme has reported other locations where attacks are said to have taken place, including the area near the Tesco at Kamenné Square, SNP Square, and the vicinity of a Vietnamese bistro on Kolárska Street.
Amnesty International Slovakia has condemned the alleged attacks, calling for swift police action. “Hate speech and hate crimes on the streets of Bratislava are terrifying and unacceptable. No one should live in fear because of who they are, where they come from, or what they look like,” said Rado Sloboda, Amnesty’s Slovak director.
Slovakia has a grim history of far-right violence. In 2005, student Daniel Tupý was murdered in Bratislava, and in 2006, Hedviga Malinová was attacked. In 2010, extremists targeted a couple with a rainbow flag during a Pride march, and in 2015, radicals assaulted a family with children and participants of a cycling race in the capital.
