Bundesweiter Protest: Zehntausende demonstrieren gegen Rechtsextremismus

In Germany, tens of thousands of people protested against right-wing extremism and the AfD (Alternative for Germany) party, with particularly large gatherings in Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Berlin, and Munich. People also took to the streets in Leipzig, Magdeburg, Mainz, and Saarbrücken. The protests were primarily sparked by the recent election results in Saxony-Anhalt and the debate on how to handle the AfD.

In Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD received nearly 44% of the votes in the state legislature election on Sunday, just shy of an absolute majority. In Düsseldorf, around 20,000 people joined a protest march under the slogan "No Step Back! Against the AfD and Right-Wing Hate." In Hamburg, around 25,000 people marched through the city center with the slogan "Time for Action - Freedom Must Be Defended."

In Berlin, people demonstrated for social cohesion and against the normalization of right-wing politics, with several processions gathering at the Rote Rathaus. The police reported 18,000 participants, while organizers claimed 32,000.

In addition to these large-scale protests, several "PRÜF" (Prüfung der Parteien) events took place in different cities. The initiative calls for the parties to be reviewed by the Federal Constitutional Court, which has classified parties with a right-wing extremist suspicion or secured right-wing extremist status. The largest protest took place in Munich with approximately 12,000 attendees, followed by Mainz with 2,000, Saarbrücken with 1,500, and Magdeburg with 1,100.

The AfD is under observation as a potential suspect party by the Federal Constitutional Court's Constitutional Police. Several state associations, including those in Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt, are classified as securely right-wing extremist. Following the AfD's election success in Saxony-Anhalt, North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister-President Hendrik Wüst (CDU) suggested setting up a federal-state working group to examine the possibility of a party ban.

While some politicians support the proposal, others express skepticism. Only the Bundestag, Bundesrat, or the federal government can file a petition for a party ban before the Federal Constitutional Court, which then decides on the matter.