The political impact of Friday’s deadly car attack at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, which left five dead and over 200 injured, continued over the weekend. Today, Germany’s largest far-right party is planning a rally, while counter-protests are also scheduled.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is organising a gathering at Domplatz in the centre of the eastern German city, followed by a march to honour the victims. AfD’s chancellor candidate for February’s elections, Alice Weidel, and several state politicians from the far-right party are expected to participate. In its announcement, the AfD claims that the terrorist attack highlighted the dramatic risks posed by the current migration policies.
Also read: High threat level for Christmas markets, in Germany
Meanwhile, another event titled “Don’t give hate a chance” is planned, aiming to form a human chain around the city’s old market square. It was at this location that the attacker, Taleb A., drove his car into the crowd, killing five people, including a nine-year-old child, and injuring around 200 others.
Additionally, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, a member of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD), stated in an interview with Der Spiegel that the draft internal security bill currently submitted to the Bundestag must be approved immediately.
She also recalled that after the Islamist-linked attack in Solingen in August, which left three dead and eight injured, the government significantly tightened gun laws and expanded law enforcement powers.
Furthermore, the minister criticised the SPD’s former coalition partners, the Free Democrats (FDP), as well as the opposition Christian Democrats (CDU). She particularly emphasised that the CDU blocked a law in the Bundesrat (the federal upper house) that would have strengthened the federal police and allowed biometric surveillance.
Also read: Magdeburg Christmas market attack: What we know so far
Source: ANA-MPA
