An Athens court ordered Giorgos Germenis and Panayiotis Ilipopolos placed in pre-trial detention late on Saturday after both suspects testified before prosecutors.

The state-run Athens News Agency cited a witness who claimed that Germenis held the post of “army major” in the organization, responsible for the recruitment and training of new members.

Both men, as well as a third Golden Dawn member of parliament, who was to appear before prosecutors on Sunday, had previously been charged with joining and directing a criminal organization.

All three, who have been stripped of their parliamentary immunity from prosecution, have denied the charges against them.

Golden Dawn and its supporters are suspected of involvement of numerous attacks on immigrants and their political opponents.

Three other Golden Dawn lawmakers, including the party's leader, Nikos Michaloliakos, have been behind bars since their arrests in October.

A further three of the party's 18 members of parliament have also been charged as part of an investigation into the murder of an anti-fascist musician back in September.

The murder of leftist rapper Pavlos Fyssas sparked the current crackdown on members of Golden Dawn and its supporters. On Friday, the party announced that it planned to challenge the imprisonment of Michaloliakos and other parliamentarians, which it described as "illegal and unconstitutional," at the European Court of Human Rights.

pfd/tj (AFP, AP)