AfD

AfD struggles to form government in Germany despite landmark election victory

Founded in 2013 as a eurosceptic movement, the AfD won over voters with an increasingly hardline opposition to immigration after around a million people fled to Germany in 2015.

|ByREUTERS
Co-leader of the Alternative for Germany party (AfD) and AfD's parliamentary group Alice Weidel speaks during a press conference on the occassion of a parliamentary group meeting ahead of the Bundestag sitting week in Berlin, Germany October 6, 2026.
Demonstrators protest an AfD campaign event in Wietze, Lower Saxony, ahead of the local elections, Sept. 10, 2026.

Germany’s far-right AfD makes gains in local elections, fended off by mainstream parties

The nationalist, anti-immigrant AfD siphoned off votes from Germany’s mainstream parties in the northwestern state, home to 8 million people. The election was seen as a test of the AfD’s recent surge

|BySHIRA LI BARTOV/JTA
(L to R) Green Party spokespersons Amanda Lind, Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Akesson, Social Democratic Party leader Magdalena Andersson, Swedish Prime Minister and Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson and Left Party leader Nooshi Dadgostar take part in a televised debate on September 10, 2026.

Swedes vote in election that could usher far right into government

Europe's rising far-right parties would welcome the Sweden Democrats' electoral success, boosted by the AfD's significant win in a German state election this month.

|ByREUTERS
People gather in front of the Brandenburg Gate to protest against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) the day after the party won in Saxony-Anhalt state elections, Berlin, Germany, Sept. 7, 2026.

Germany’s far-right AfD, riding state win, targets more gains in elections from east to west

The three upcoming elections are being closely watched for signs of the AfD’s wider-scale momentum, said Daniel Schuster, who heads the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s European office. 

|BySHIRA LI BARTOV/JTA

Germany's AfD confirms politicians exchanged antisemitic, racist texts in group chat

The party has reportedly disciplined the members involved in the WhatsApp group.

MAY 18, 2018ByREUTERS
Demonstrators protest against the anti-immigration party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) after German general election

Germany's AfD decides not to expel critic of Holocaust memorial

Bjoern Hoecke criticized the memorial in Berlin to victims of the Nazi Holocaust as a "monument of shame."

MAY 9, 2018ByREUTERS
Bjoern Hoecke of the right-wing Alternative for Germany stands outside the former Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald near Weimar, Germany

Former Mossad agent praises German nationalist ultra-right party AfD

"The AfD is a great hope for many people, not only in Germany but also for us in Israel and in many Western countries."

FEBRUARY 4, 2018ByJULIANE HELMHOLD
Alexander Gauland, top candidate of the anti-immigration party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) speaks during a news conference in Berlin, Germany, September 25, 2017.

German far-right politician converts to Islam

Arthur Wagner quit his AfD leadership post in the eastern state of Brandenburg.

JANUARY 24, 2018ByREUTERS
An Imam performs Friday prayers on Skalitzer Strasse (street) in Berlin September 19, 2014.

German police accuse AfD lawmaker of incitement over anti-Muslim tweet

Social media platforms face hefty fines in Germany if they fail to remove hateful postings swiftly, and companies like Facebook and Twitter have hired extra staff to monitor such messages.

JANUARY 2, 2018ByREUTERS
Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland, top candidates of the anti-immigration party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD)

German artists build Holocaust memorial near far-right leader's home

"Germans are the only people in the world who plant a monument of shame in the heart of the capital," Bjoern Hoecke said.

NOVEMBER 22, 2017ByREUTERS
A woman walks through the Holocaust memorial during heavy snowfall in Berlin.

The owl: Populism, not fascism

The attempts of Netanyahu’s administration to augment its authority, its rhetorical intolerance towards rivals and its racism are indeed worrying.

OCTOBER 4, 2017ByDANNY ORBACH
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a cabinet meeting

Viewpoint: Ample cause for prayer

In this climate, boldness and resolution cannot prosper.

OCTOBER 2, 2017ByAMIEL UNGAR
Notes placed in the Western Wall prior to Rosh Hashana cleaning

The rise of Germany's far-right: Interview with AfD's deputy chair

The discussion about the character of Europe emanating from the German election and rise of its far-right could trigger debates on more strategic issues.

OCTOBER 2, 2017ByGOL KALEV
Member of the European Parliament Beatrix von Storch speaks at a press conference of the Germany's far-right Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party in Berlin

Split emerges in German far right; co-leader storms out of news conference

Frauke Petry, who was long considered the AfD's most recognizable face, said she would take up her seat but would not be part of AfD's parliamentary group.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2017ByREUTERS
Frauke Petry, chairwoman of the anti-immigration party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) reacts during a news conference in Berlin, Germany, September 25, 2017.