Chancellor angered by Koethen demonstration following death of German who fought Afghans
The German chancellor, Angela Merkel
has expressed anger after far-right demonstrators chanted Nazi slogans as they marched over the death of a German man following a fight with two Afghans
Local police and prosecutors said the 22-year-old deceased had suffered acute heart failure after an altercation with the suspects in a playground in the eastern town of Köethen late on Saturday
The far right mobilised a demonstration on Sunday evening that drew 2,500 participants
but groups of mostly white men were filmed chanting “national socialism
now now” – a reference to the Nazis’ declared ideology – according to footage circulating on social media
That must affect us and outrage us,” said Steffen Seibert
Saxony-Anhalt state’s interior minister Holger Stahlknecht said several investigations have been launched into incitement to hatred after speeches given during the rally
Investigators are also examining chants shouted during the demonstration
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has announced a new rally for Monday night
although it said political speeches would not be made
a man the website identified as a member of a far-right organisation
was seen telling the crowd to loud applause that “we must defend ourselves in the race war against the German people
“Do you want to continue to be bleating sheep or do you want to become wolves and shred them to pieces?” he asked
Authorities have said the death of the man was “not directly” linked to the injuries he suffered in the fight
But fears were growing that the latest case
which comes two weeks after the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old man in the eastern city of Chemnitz sparked xenophobic protests
could further inflame anti-migrant tensions
Two suspects – an Iraqi and a Syrian – have been arrested over the Chemnitz stabbing and a third man
The Chemnitz protests have also led to a clash between Merkel and the head of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, who raised doubts about a video purportedly showing a “hunt on foreigners” by neo-Nazi mobs.
Merkel’s spokesman and the chancellor herself have repeatedly used the description in condemning the violent protests.
Read moreBut spy chief Hans-Georg Maaßen told the Bild newspaper that he had “no proof” that the video circulating online, which appeared to show immigrants being accosted and chased, was authentic.
Maaßen, under pressure to show proof to back his claim, has submitted to the government a report, which is being “examined”, said both Seibert and the interior ministry.
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