Tens of thousands of Germans protest against far-right
Tens of thousands of Germans have taken to the streets to protest against the far-right.
The demonstrations are in response to a report claiming that several members of the far-right Alternative for Germany Party (AfD) had taken part in a meeting where plans to deport migrants en masse were discussed.
In Berlin, crowds braved freezing temperatures to show their condemnation.
Signs read “Racism is not an alternative” and “Nazis out”.
Organisers said 350,000 had gathered, while local media reported police put the number at 100,000.
“We need to do much more about what’s going on in Germany, we don’t want any Nazis coming back and we want to have a colourful society,” said Lydia who held her rainbow sign aloft.
Lydia says ‘we don’t want any Nazis coming back’
‘It makes me scared,’ says Dalila
Many are afraid Germany is going in a direction they aren’t comfortable with.
“Racist people are growing and we would like to send a sign that we don’t like it,” explained Uvi.
Dalila added: “It makes me scared. You can feel it everywhere; there’s a movement going more and more to the right side. That’s why I like to come here.”
In Munich, protests had to be called off due to overcrowding after around 100,000 people showed up.
Huge crowds also gathered in cities including Frankfurt, Cologne and Hamburg over the weekend.
Many demonstrators are calling for the AfD party to be banned.
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Some have compared the so-called “remigration” proposal with the Nazis’ initial plan to deport European Jews to Madagascar.
“What we see here is not oblivious to history, but deliberately pursuing Nazi ideologies; what we see are right-wing extremist networks and right-wing extremist ideologies,” German interior minister, Nancy Faeser, recently told reporters.
This is a clear attempt to define ethnically who belongs in Germany and who does not and we will not allow that.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attends a protest in Potsdam
In a video message ahead of the weekend’s demonstrations, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed the protests as “good and right”.
He warned: “Right-wing extremists are attacking our democracy. They want to destroy our cohesion.”
Investigation uncovers alleged ‘master plan’
The investigation by journalism network Correctiv alleged a “master plan” for the mass deportation of German asylum-seekers and German citizens of foreign origin was discussed at a meeting in Potsdam in November attended by members of the AfD, neo-Nazis and other far-right extremists.
Two members of the Christian Democrats (CDU), the party of former chancellor Angela Merkel, were also said to be present, although it’s reported neither holds an office in the party.
At the meeting, the Austrian leader of the far-right Identitarian Movement, Martin Sellner, reportedly proposed a project of “remigration” which would see “unassimilated” immigrants forced to leave Germany even if they had citizenship.
The idea for deportees to be sent to a “model state” in North Africa was also floated, Correctiv reported, citing hidden camera footage, accounts by attendees and reporters staking out the hotel where the meeting was held.
Huge crowds have gathered in cities including Frankfurt
AfD denies plans are party policy
The AfD, which is polling second in nationwide surveys, has denied the plans are party policy.
Co-leader Alice Weidel parted ways with one of her advisers who participated in the talks.
Simon Green, professor of politics at Aston University, said: “To ban a party which is actually doing quite well which has significant public support brings with it real political risks as well because what happens to those supporters.
“Defeating populist and extreme right-wing parties through legal means is a process which is flawed with risk. Typically, it is better to defeat these parties politically than legally.”
Despite the AfD’s denial, numerous cities have seen demonstrations throughout the week.
The AfD is under investigation by security authorities in several German states and risks being declared an extremist organisation by national authorities, which could lead to it being banned.
The party denies it is extremist or racist.
World
Trump criticises Putin after potentially ‘historic’ meeting with Zelenskyy before Pope’s funeral
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Follow live updates: 200,000 mourn at Vatican
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish armed forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening.
“The nature of the incident indicates that Russia is testing the readiness of our air defence systems,” they said in a post on X.
On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
Leaning forward hands together in their laps, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy stare at each other in one photo.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.
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