Correction of criminal guilt finding from "membership activity" to "membership participation" in terrorist association abroad

The German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) 3rd Criminal Senate rejected the defendant's appeal as unfounded, leaving the appellate conviction and sentence intact, while ordering a formal amendment to the statement of guilt to correct the legal characterization of the offense. The case involved a criminal appeal against a lower court judgment for participation in a terrorist organization abroad; the primary dispute concerned the precise terminology of the statutory offense committed. The court held that the defendant was guilty of "membership in a terrorist association abroad" (*mitgliedschaftliche Beteiligung*) rather than "membership activity in a terrorist association abroad" (*mitgliedschaftliche Betätigung*), applying the revision court's power to correct obvious errors in the guilt finding under § 354 Abs. 1 StPO analogously, citing prior BGH jurisprudence to ensure accurate alignment with the statutory definition of § 129a StGB.