On February 25, tens of thousands of people took to the streets to participate in protests in two major cities, Hamburg and Dresden, against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, amid a wave of protests against the far-right in the country.
Organizers estimated that around 50,000 people took part in the largest protest in Hamburg, northern Germany. Meanwhile in Dresden, an estimated 20,000 people gathered in the capital city of the eastern state of Saxony.
The wave of protests in Germany comes after an investigative report revealed that right-wing extremists met last year to discuss deporting millions of immigrants, even those with migrant backgrounds. Some AfD members were present at the meeting.
In addition to the two major cities, organizers also called for protests in cities near Dresden, such as Zwickau, Bautzen, Görlitz and Meissen.
The AfD, a Eurosceptic party, was founded in 2013 and entered the German parliament for the first time in 2017. A nationwide poll earlier this year showed the AfD in second place with 23% support, much higher than the 10.3% it won in the last federal election in 2021. After the above investigation information was revealed, the AfD's support dropped sharply.