Extremism in the army: only 39 “cases” in Switzerland

73 percent of the advisory inquiries and clues noticed in the Schweizer Armee, although negligible, concerned alleged “right-wing” political cases

In 2020, 39 announcements and requests for advice were forwarded to the Specialized Service for Extremism in the Armed Forces.

Flyer “Fachstelle Exstremismus in der Armee” (in German, French and Italian)

The clear majority of reported requests for advice and leads (73 percent) concerned alleged cases of “right-wing” extremism.
Mostly isolated cases were reported, and no security-relevant incidents occurred.

Jihadist fundamentalism also in decline

In the year under review, the decrease, observed since 2017, in applications related to cases of alleged jihadist extremism continued.
Compared to previous years, the overall picture remained stable.
Also in 2020 it was mainly isolated incidents of possible radicalization or announcements of alleged extremist activities in civilian life.

No acts of violence or actual incidents of danger

There have been no acts of violence or incidents relevant to security.
The army continues to systematically apply the existing legal provisions and its zero tolerance strategy as well as to monitor ongoing developments.
During the year under review, the army continued to systematically train all future section leaders as well as unit and school commanders.
The Specialized Service for Extremism within the Armed Forces made an important contribution, holding 18 instructional sequences in 12 training courses.

Tätigkeitsbericht 2020 der Fachstelle Extremismus in der Armee
Rapport d’activité 2020 du service spécialisé Extrémisme dans l’armé
Rapporto di attività 2020 del Servizio specializzato per l’estremismo