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Further rallies are planned for Sunday, particularly in Berlin and Dresden in Saxony, a stronghold of the anti-immigrant and anti-system party Alternative for Germany (AfD).
Published on January 20, 2024 9:26 p.m
Reading time: 1 min
A crowd gathered against the far-right AfD in Wuppertal, Germany, on January 20, 2024. (HESHAM ELSHERIF / ANADOLU / AFP)
Political leaders, religious representatives, but also coaches from the Bundesliga, the German soccer championship, called on the German population to mobilize. According to the public television broadcaster ARD, around 250,000 people demonstrated on Saturday, January 20th against the right-wing extremist party Alternative for Germany (AfD), which is currently reaching its highest poll number a few months before three important state elections in the country in which the party is has the most followers.
The mobilization was triggered by the German investigative media Correctiv's revelation on January 10 of a plan to mass deport foreigners or people of foreign origin, which was discussed in November at a meeting of extremists in Potsdam, near Berlin. Among the participants were a representative of the radical identity movement, the Austrian Martin Sellner, and members of the AfD. A revelation that shocked Germany.
Further meetings are planned for Sunday
The largest gatherings took place in Frankfurt, the country's financial capital, with 35,000 participants, according to local police. A similar number of demonstrators gathered in Hanover (north), some holding up “Nazis out” signs, while around 30,000 people marched through the streets of Dortmund (west) and 16,000 in Halle, according to police. There were also demonstrations in Erfurt, Aachen, Kassel and many other smaller cities, like the daily mobilizations this week.
Further rallies are planned for Sunday, particularly in Berlin and Dresden in Saxony, a stronghold of the anti-immigrant and anti-system party.