Hundreds of thousands protest in Germany against far-right party

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) - Hundreds of thousands of people on Sunday took to the streets of Germany to voice their protest against a far-right political party and its anti-migrant stance.

The protests have been going on for days following revelations that the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party discussed plans for mass deportation of people with foreign backgrounds.

Munich police said at its peak around 100,000 people took part in the meeting, adding that there were many people around the Siegestor memorial arch and traffic closures remain in place.

Tens of thousands of people also demonstrated in cities such as Cologne and Bremen, where dozens of parties and local organizations as well as initiatives took part.

A large number of people also gathered at the German parliament in Berlin to march through the government district.

Formed in 2013, the AfD gained particular traction in 2015 when about a million migrants and refugees arrived in Germany. It entered the Bundestag for the first time in 2017. Its popularity has risen again since Russia’s war on Ukraine.

New state parliaments will be elected in September in Brandenburg, Saxony and Thuringia, and according to surveys the AfD could become the strongest force in all three states.