Berlin  - A court in the eastern German city of Cottbus has refused permission for a search of private land where the bodies of hundreds of former concentration camp inmates are believed buried.

The owner of the land in Jamlitz had objected to a search and the court said there was no legal basis to overrule his objection, according to a statement released Thursday.

Jamlitz, located south-east of Berlin in the state of Brandenburg, used to house a detention facility that was part of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.

Between 400-700 Hungarian camp inmates were believed murdered at the site in February 1945 and their bodies buried on land that now forms part of a private home.

Brandenburg Interior Minister Joerg Schoenbohm expressed regret at the court's decision and the fact that the location of "hundreds of victims murdered by the Nazis" remained unclear. (dpa)