Hackers down German government websites

germany hacked
Various German government websites were not working Wednesday.

Pro-Russian hackers have claimed responsibility for a major attack on German government websites.

The group -- CyberBerkut -- said Wednesday it brought down the websites for Germany's parliament and Germany's Chancellor, Angela Merkel.

The websites were not loading for hours, though the government said Wednesday afternoon they're in the midst of getting things back to normal.

The hack was politically motivated, with the group saying it was unhappy that the European Union and the International Monetary Fund were giving billions in bailout money to Ukraine.

Ukraine is in the midst of a protracted fight with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern part of the country.

The hacker group's rallying cry on its site says, "We will not forget. We will not forgive."

This is the latest in a string of high profile hack attacks.

Sony (SNE) was the latest big company to suffer a wide-reaching hack that gained international attention.

Sony's CEO Kazuo Hirai said called the cyberattack "one of the most vicious and malicious ... in recent history."

--CNN intern Ryan Powell contributed to this report from Berlin.

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