Germany sends 23,000 takedown requests over Islamist posts in 2025

Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) reported a sharp rise in Islamist content flagged online in 2025, sending around 23,000 takedown requests to service providers, according to a government response seen by dpa.

In the previous five years, annual requests ranged between 7,240 and 13,903, reported dpa.

The notices alert platforms to breaches of their own terms and conditions and ask them to remove the material.

The removal rate improved markedly. The government said 96% of flagged Islamist posts were taken down in 2025, up from around 90% in 2024 and roughly 80% in 2023.

Separate from such notices are formal removal orders issued under an EU regulation when terrorist content is identified. In those cases, providers must delete the material within one hour or block access across the European Union.

Authorities issued 215 such orders in 2025, all of which were implemented, the government said. In 2024, 462 removal orders were sent to providers operating within the EU, with around 96% carried out.

Germany's Joint Internet Centre (GIZ), set up in 2007, coordinates efforts to detect extremist content online and assess potential threats. Participants include the BKA and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

The removal of illegal content falls within the responsibility of Germany's federal states, while the federal government can provide support. The BKA has its own mandate in cases involving terrorist material.

The surge in removal requests is said to be driven by an increased focus on individual users in Germany, as well as on so-called nasheeds. While these are traditionally religious hymns, nasheeds can also contain Islamist propaganda or terrorist incitements to violence.