German prince faces trial in far-right coup plot

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAY 21 - A prince, a former MP and ex-army officers will go on trial Tuesday, accused of masterminding a conspiracy theory-driven plot to attack the German parliament and topple the government. In one of the biggest cases heard by German courts in decades, prosecutors accuse the group of preparing a "treasonous undertaking" to storm the Bundestag and take MPs hostage. The proceedings at the regional court in Frankfurt are the second of three trials against defendants linked to the putsch plan. Eight suspected members of the coup plot will take the stand in Frankfurt, as well as one woman accused of supporting their efforts to overthrow Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government. The minor aristocrat and businessman Prince Heinrich XIII Reuss, one of the group's ringleaders who will stand trial in Frankfurt, was said to be in line to become the provisional head of state after the current government was overthrown. The sensational plan, foiled by authorities at the end of 2022, is the most high-profile example of the growing threat of violence from the political fringes in Germany. (ANSA-AFP).