German protest over Nazi toy soldiers on Amazon

A toy Wehrmacht soldier is among the items aimed at young children

A German father is campaigning online to stop Lego-style toy Nazi soldiers being sold on Amazon.

Manuel Hegel's petition says the toys "represent officers, soldiers etc of the Waffen-SS and thereby trivialise National Socialism".

The toys are sold by a German firm, Custom Brick Design, and Lego says they do not comply with Lego's own values.

A Lego statement said the Danish toy firm "does not in any way sponsor or endorse the product - on the contrary".

The statement, sent to the BBC, did not specify any legal action in this case, but said: "In general we take the steps necessary to ensure consumers are never in doubt."

The ad on Amazon warns that the toys "are not suitable for children aged seven or less" and "require adult supervision".

Custom Brick Design also sells toy soldiers and vehicles styled on the Allies in World War Two.

German law bans the use of Nazi symbols, such as the swastika and stylised eagle (the "Reichsadler"), outside the context of education or art.

Mr Hegel argued that the toy soldiers could encourage children to accept "one of the most inhumane regimes in history".

He said it was "chilling to imagine that these figures could soon lie under the Christmas tree and get into children's hands".

Correction 18 December 2017: An earlier version of this report incorrectly named the company involved as CustomBricks, who have no connection to this issue.