Masked neo-Nazis march in US state capital (VIDEOS)

A group of neo-Nazis marched through Columbus, the capital of the US state of Ohio, on Saturday, chanting racist and anti-Semitic slogans.

Black-clad men in ski masks were filmed walking on the street in the Short North neighborhood, carrying black flags with large red swastikas. In a video posted on X, the marchers are heard shouting “Bow down, n****r” and “Get the f**k out my country.”

It is not clear who the men are and what organization they belong to. Some passersby accosted the marchers and yelled insults at them. There were no reports of violent incidents, however.

Ohio politicians and Jewish groups condemned the procession. “There is no place in this state for hate, bigotry, antisemitism, or violence, and we must denounce it wherever we see it,” Governor Mike DeWine said.

“We will not allow any of our neighbors to be intimidated, threatened or harmed because of who they are, how they worship or whom they love,” the city of Columbus said in a statement.

Columbus city attorney Zach Klein denounced the marchers on X, telling them to “go home and never come back.”

Lee Shapiro, the regional director of the American Jewish Committee, described the march as “another sad example of the bigotry that we have witnessed across the country.”

Police have launched an investigation. There is no information if any arrests were made.

The FBI has been reporting a rise in hate crimes in the US in recent years. Anti-Semitic incidents surged further after the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023.