German court backs intelligence agency's designation of far-right party as suspected extremist case

BERLIN: Germany's domestic intelligence agency was justified in designating the far-right Alternative for Germany as a suspected case of extremism, a court ruled Monday, rejecting an appeal from the opposition party. The administrative court in Muenster ruled in favour of the BfV intelligence agency, upholding a 2022 decision by a lower court in Cologne, German news agency dpa reported. Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has rejected the designation strongly.

The party could still seek to appeal the verdict at a federal court.

AfD was formed in 2013 and has moved steadily to the right over the years.

Its platform initially centred on opposition to bailouts for struggling eurozone members, but its vehement opposition to then-Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to allow in large numbers of refugees and other migrants in 2015 established the party as a significant political force.

AfD has been polling strongly in Germany in recent months as discontent is high with centre-left Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-party coalition government.

However, its support declined somewhat following a media report in January that extremists met to discuss the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship, and that some figures from the party attended. The report triggered mass protests in the country against the rise of the far-right.