Germany banned an Islamic extremist group, the Cologne-based...

Germany banned an Islamic extremist group, the Cologne-based State of Califat, and warned that similar groups could also be shut down under security laws tightened since terrorist attacks on September 11.
Otto Schily, interior minister, said the ban had been imposed because the group - which demands the replacement of the Turkish government with a strict Islamic state - was "a threat to internal security" and refused to abide by German laws.
Schily, said "a large number" of members of the group would be extradited to Turkey but the Turkish government must in advance provide assurances that the deportees will not face the death penalty.
The ban was welcomed by several mainstream Islamic and Turkish organisations in Germany.