Costa on list of ‘undesirables’ targeted by Portuguese neo-Nazi group

European Council President António Costa was among the more than 100 politicians and public figures included in a list of “undesirables” targeted by a Portuguese neo-Nazi group, the country’s Public Prosecutor’s Office revealed Friday.

Following its creation in 2018, the Lusitanian Armillary Movement (MAL) ― which authorities describe as a “far-right, nationalist, neo-Nazi, white supremacist, anti-establishment” movement ― began to compile a list of potential targets the group held responsible for the “decline of the nation.”

In addition to Costa, who served as Portugal’s prime minister between 2015 and 2024, the list included the country’s current head of government, Luís Montenegro, former presidents Aníbal Cavaco Silva and Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas. Public figures like journalist Miguel Sousa Tavares, comedian Ricardo Araújo Pereira and former European Parliament lawmaker Ana Gomes were also on the list.

According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the list was used to plan “future actions” against prominent targets. Among the group’s alleged members was a high-ranking officer in Portugal’s Public Security Police who supplied the MAL with information regarding top politicians’ security arrangements. The group discussed raiding Montenegro’s apartment in a bid to kidnap the prime minister and targeting Costa’s private residence with a drone.

Portuguese authorities arrested six members of the MAL in June 2025, four of whom remain in pre-trial detention for alleged terrorist offenses. According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the group had extensive ties to neo-Nazi groups throughout Europe. It was using 3D printers to produce so-called “ghost weapons” for attacking its targets.