At least 120,000 gather in Berlin for latest round of protests against far-right

BERLIN/FRANKFURT: Around 120,000 people took to the streets of Berlin on Saturday in the fourth week of protests against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Protests were also taking place in cities such as Dresden and Hanover, in a sign of growing alarm at strong public support for the AfD. Police said people were still flocking to the Reichstag parliament building in Berlin, where protesters gathered under the slogan “We are the Firewall” to protest against right-wing extremism and to show support for democracy.

“Whether in Eisenach, Homburg or Berlin: in small and large cities across the country, many citizens are coming together to demonstrate against forgetting, against hatred and hate speech,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on X.

He said the protests were “a strong sign in favour of democracy and our constitution”. The AfD’s success has stoked concern among Germany’s mainstream parties, who fear it could sweep three state elections in eastern Germany in September, even though recent polls have shown a slight decline in AfD support.