German spy agency labels far-right AfD party 'extremist'
Warning: This story contains as image of a person doing a Nazi salute.
A far-right party in Germany has been labelled an "extremist" entity that threatens democracy by a German intelligence agency.
The spy agency said it now had evidence the Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party, which is the second biggest force in German parliament, works against the country's democracy.
"The ethnicity- and ancestry-based conception of the people that predominates within the party is not compatible with the free democratic order," the domestic intelligence agency said in a statement.
"It aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society, to subject them to treatment that violates the constitution, and thereby assign them a legally subordinate status."
Polls show the AfD party has doubled its popularity since the 2021 federal election.
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Reuters: Karina Hessland
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A regional politician from the AfD referred to the party's classification by the agency as "politically questionable."
"It is sad to see the state of democracy in our country when the old parties are now even using the most politically questionable means against the strongest opposition party," said Anton Baron.
The move does not ban the party but aims to make it easier for authorities to use secret methods to monitor the AfD for example by recruiting confidential informants and intercepting communications.
The stigma as well as restrictions on civil service employment could also make it harder for the party to attract members.
'Discriminates against entire population groups'
The AfD represents an ethnic concept that discriminates against entire population groups and treats citizens with a history of migration as second-class Germans, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said, commenting on the agency's claims.
"Their ethnic attitude is reflected in racist statements, especially against immigrants and Muslims," Ms Faeser said in a statement.
The AfD does not consider German citizens of immigrant background from predominantly Muslim countries as equal members of the German people, it added.
This approach led to individuals and groups being "defamed and vilified", stirring up "irrational fears and hostility toward them," it added.
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Germany's shift towards the far right
The decision comes days before conservative leader Friedrich Merz is due to be sworn in as Germany's new chancellor and amid a heated debate over how to deal with the AfD in the new parliament.
The party won a record number of seats which entitles it to chair several key parliamentary committees although it would still need the backing of other parties.
Analysts said the decision risks further fuelling support for the AfD and its narrative that it is being sidelined by a "cartel" of established parties.
The party has topped several polls since February's snap federal election, after the country's three-party coalition collapsed in November last year.
The AfD doubled its share of votes since the 2021 election in what was the far-right's biggest win since World War II.
US tech billionaire Elon Musk told supporters of the AfD that their party was "the best hope for the future of Germany", in video link at a rally of thousands in January.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk backed the AfD at a rally in January.
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Supplied: Sean Gallup / Getty Images
)
"It's good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything,"
Mr Musk said.
Certain factions of the AfD such as its youth wing had already been classified extremist, while the party at large was classified a suspected extremist case in 2021.
ABC/Reuters
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