A German court lifts a government ban on a far-right magazine
Germany's previous government banned Compact magazine and the company that publishes it, Compact-Magazin GmbH, in July. Then-Interior Minister Nancy Faeser described Compact as 'a central mouthpiece of the extremist scene,' and said that 'it agitates in an unspeakable way against Jews, against people with a history of migration and against our parliamentary democracy.'
Compact appealed to the Federal Administrative Court, which suspended the ban in August pending a full consideration of the case. Following a hearing earlier this month, the court lifted the ban altogether on Tuesday.
The court said in a statement that Germany's constitution 'guarantees freedom of the press and opinion even for the enemies of freedom,' and that 'on grounds of proportionality a ban could only be justified if the publisher's anti-constitutional activities were proven to be formative for the group.' It said a review of the evidence showed that the material in question didn't reach that threshold.
Compact is run by far-right figure Jürgen Elsässer and produces the monthly magazine of the same name, which has a circulation of about 40,000, as well as an online video channel, Compact TV. It also runs an online shop selling books, CDs, DVDs, and other merchandise. Compact has been published since 2010.
In its annual report for 2023, Germany's domestic intelligence agency said that it regularly disseminates antisemitic, anti-minority, historically revisionist, and conspiracy theory content.
The strength of the far right has caused increasing concern in Germany in recent years.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Zelensky arrives at White House for high-stakes talks with Trump
WASHINGTON: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was greeted by US President Donald Trump at the White House Monday ahead of high-stakes talks aimed at bridging big differences over a peace deal with Russia. The leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland, as well as NATO chief Mark Rutte and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, also arrived for the talks, demonstrating support for Ukraine as Trump presses Kyiv to make concessions. Air raid sirens sounded over Kyiv on Monday, AFP journalists heard, at the same time as the Europeans were arriving. Russian strikes overnight killed at least seven people. Following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week, Trump said Ukraine must give up Crimea and abandon its NATO ambitions — two of Moscow's top demands. Zelensky was scheduled for a one-on-one with Trump in the Oval Office, scene of an astonishing meeting in February February when the US president and his deputy JD Vance publicly berated the Ukrainian. Trump will later meet separately with the European leaders. Trump, 79, said it was a 'big day at the White House' but appeared to be in a combative mood, churning out a string of social media posts. 'I know exactly what I'm doing,' the Republican said on his Truth Social network. 'And I don't need the advice of people who have been working on all of these conflicts for years, and were never able to do a thing to stop them.' The European leaders held a preparatory meeting with the Ukrainian president in Washington on Monday morning, while Zelensky also met Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg. Zelensky described the talks at the White House as 'very serious' — and sought to flatter Trump ahead of the meeting, by echoing his trademark 'peace through strength' language. 'President Trump has that strength. We have to do everything right to make peace happen,' he said. Zelensky later called on social media for a 'reliable and lasting peace for Ukraine and for the whole of Europe' and said they would discuss Western security guarantees for Ukraine. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters on the plane to Washington: 'We've got to make sure there is peace, that it is lasting peace, and that it is fair and that it is just.' Reports had said Putin would be open to Western security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of any peace deal — but had ruled out Kyiv's long-term ambition to join NATO. Russia kept up its attacks on Ukraine ahead of the new talks, killing at least seven people, including two children, in dozens of drone and ballistic missile strikes overnight, Ukrainian officials said. The Trump-Putin summit in Alaska failed to produce a ceasefire in the nearly three-and-a-half-year war that began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. After, Trump dropped his previous insistence on a ceasefire in favor of seeking a complete peace deal, meaning negotiations could proceed while the war goes on. He also alarmed Kyiv and European capitals by repeating a number of Russian talking points. Trump said Sunday that Zelensky could end the war 'almost immediately, if he wants to' but that, for Ukraine, there was 'no getting back' Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and 'NO GOING INTO NATO.' US media reports have said Putin would consider freezing much of the current frontline in Ukraine if Kyiv agreed to completely give up the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff said Moscow had made 'some concessions' on territory. But such a move is widely viewed as unacceptable for Ukraine, which still holds much of the resource-rich area. Yevgeniy Sosnovsky, a photographer from the captured Ukrainian city of Mariupol, said he 'cannot understand' how Ukraine would cede land already under its control. 'Ukraine cannot give up any territories, not even those occupied by Russia,' he told AFP. Kyiv and European leaders have warned against making political and territorial concessions to Russia, whose assault on Ukraine has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
Asharq Al-Awsat
an hour ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
What to Know About Zelenskyy's Meeting with Trump
US President Donald Trump is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House on Monday to discuss how to end Russia's three-year war in Ukraine. Months of US-led diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting haven't made headway, but the stakes have risen since Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. After that summit, Trump abandoned the requirement of reaching a ceasefire in order to hold further talks and aligned with Putin's position that negotiations should focus on a long-term settlement instead. The presence of several European leaders at the talks in Washington shows how central the conflict — and any settlement — is to wider security questions on the continent. They are looking to safeguard Ukraine and Europe more broadly from any further aggression from Moscow, but also are providing a show of support for Zelenskyy after his last visit to the White House led to an angry confrontation. The American and Ukrainian leaders are scheduled to first meet privately, without the Europeans. On 'Trump's ultimate policy towards the Russia-Ukraine war hangs not just the future of Ukraine security, but Europe's as well,' said Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. 'The stakes could not be higher for the continent.'' Here's what to know about the Washington meeting. The talks could be a pivotal moment in the war After meeting Putin in Alaska, Trump is making a big push for a breakthrough. A lot of issues need to be resolved, however, and the two sides have previously established red lines that are incompatible, including questions of whether Ukraine will cede any land to Russia, the future of Ukraine's army and whether the country will have any guarantee against further Russian aggression. In a post on social media Sunday night, Trump appeared to shift the burden for ending the war to Zelenskyy, whose country was invaded in February 2022. 'President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,' he wrote. A comprehensive peace deal could still be a long way off. Putin wants the Donbas As a condition for peace, the Russian leader wants Kyiv to give up the Donbas, the industrial region in eastern Ukraine that has seen some of the most intense fighting but that Russian forces have failed to capture completely. In his Sunday night post, Trump wrote that Zelenskyy should also accept Russia's illegal 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. As part of a deal, Putin has said the United States and its European allies can provide Ukraine with a security guarantee resembling NATO's collective defense pledge, according to a senior US official. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff called that a 'game-changing' step though he offered few details on how it would work. Ukraine has long pressed for some kind of guarantee that would prevent Russia from invading again. Ukraine won't surrender land to Russia Zelenskyy has rejected Putin's demand that Ukraine surrender the Donbas region, made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, since the Ukrainian Constitution forbids giving up territory or trading land. That also means he can't cede Crimea either. Instead, freezing the front line, which snakes roughly 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from northeastern to southeastern Ukraine, seems to be the most the Ukrainian people might accept. Russia currently holds about 20% of Ukrainian territory. Europe's security is also at stake European leaders see Ukraine's fight as a bulwark against any Kremlin ambitions to threaten other countries in eastern Europe and beyond. French President Emmanuel Macron described Ukraine as an 'outpost of our collective defense if Russia wanted to advance again.' 'If we are weak with Russia today, we'll be preparing the conflicts of tomorrow and they will impact the Ukrainians and — make no mistake — they can impact us, too.' Macron said Sunday. The European political heavyweights expected in Washington are Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. Civilians are killed as the fighting continues Ukraine has in recent months been losing more territory against Russia's bigger army, and Moscow's forces breached Ukrainian lines in a series of minor infiltrations in the Donetsk region ahead of the Alaska summit. But there is no sign of a looming, major Russian breakthrough on the front line. Both sides have also kept up their daily long-range strikes behind the front line. A Russian drone strike on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, killed six people late Sunday, including an 18-month-old and a 16-year-old, according to regional head Oleh Syniehubov. The attack on the northeastern city injured 20 others, including six children, he said. Russia's Defense Ministry on Monday reported intercepting 23 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions and the annexed Crimean peninsula overnight.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Europeans arrive for high-stakes Trump and Zelensky talks
WASHINGTON: European leaders arrived at the White House Monday ahead of high-stakes talks with US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky aimed at bridging big differences over a peace deal with leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland, as well as NATO chief Mark Rutte and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, are demonstrating support for Ukraine as Trump presses Kyiv to make raid sirens sounded over Kyiv on Monday, AFP journalists heard, at the same time as the Europeans were arriving. Russian strikes overnight killed at least seven his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week, Trump said Ukraine must give up Crimea and abandon its NATO ambitions — two of Moscow's top was due to arrive shortly for a one-on-one with Trump in the Oval Office, scene of an astonishing meeting in February February when the US president and his deputy JD Vance publicly berated the will later meet separately with the European 79, said it was a 'big day at the White House' but appeared to be in a combative mood, churning out a string of social media posts.'I know exactly what I'm doing,' the Republican said on his Truth Social network. 'And I don't need the advice of people who have been working on all of these conflicts for years, and were never able to do a thing to stop them.'The European leaders held a preparatory meeting with the Ukrainian president in Washington on Monday morning, while Zelensky also met Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith described the talks at the White House as 'very serious' — and sought to flatter Trump ahead of the meeting, by echoing his trademark 'peace through strength' language.'President Trump has that strength. We have to do everything right to make peace happen,' he later called on social media for a 'reliable and lasting peace for Ukraine and for the whole of Europe' and said they would discuss Western security guarantees for Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters on the plane to Washington: 'We've got to make sure there is peace, that it is lasting peace, and that it is fair and that it is just.'Reports had said Putin would be open to Western security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of any peace deal — but had ruled out Kyiv's long-term ambition to join kept up its attacks on Ukraine ahead of the new talks, killing at least seven people, including two children, in dozens of drone and ballistic missile strikes overnight, Ukrainian officials Trump-Putin summit in Alaska failed to produce a ceasefire in the nearly three-and-a-half-year war that began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February Trump dropped his previous insistence on a ceasefire in favor of seeking a complete peace deal, meaning negotiations could proceed while the war goes on. He also alarmed Kyiv and European capitals by repeating a number of Russian talking said Sunday that Zelensky could end the war 'almost immediately, if he wants to' but that, for Ukraine, there was 'no getting back' Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and 'NO GOING INTO NATO.'US media reports have said Putin would consider freezing much of the current frontline in Ukraine if Kyiv agreed to completely give up the Donbas region in eastern envoy Steve Witkoff said Moscow had made 'some concessions' on such a move is widely viewed as unacceptable for Ukraine, which still holds much of the resource-rich Sosnovsky, a photographer from the captured Ukrainian city of Mariupol, said he 'cannot understand' how Ukraine would cede land already under its control.'Ukraine cannot give up any territories, not even those occupied by Russia,' he told and European leaders have warned against making political and territorial concessions to Russia, whose assault on Ukraine has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
