German Intelligence Agency Designates AfD as a Confirmed Right-Wing Extremist Group

The German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz), Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, has officially classified the Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a confirmed right-wing extremist endeavor. This significant decision marks a substantial escalation in the government’s assessment of the party, previously designated only as a suspected right-wing extremist case. The agency’s determination is based on what it describes as the party’s disregard for human dignity and its extremist character, which permeates the organization as a whole.

The decision follows an intensive and comprehensive evaluation spanning approximately three years, during which the intelligence agency meticulously scrutinized the AfD’s activities, pronouncements, and policy platforms. The assessment included an analysis of statements made during the federal election campaign and in the lead-up to the three state elections in eastern Germany. The intelligence agency stated that the investigation confirmed and solidified the suspicion that the party pursues objectives that contravene the fundamental principles of Germany’s free democratic order.

While this classification applies specifically to the federal party, the agency clarified that it does not automatically extend to state-level branches of the AfD that have not already been categorized as confirmed right-wing extremist. The decision of individual state offices for the protection of the constitution to adopt the federal agency’s assessment will depend on the specific legal framework in each state.

According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the AfD’s prevailing understanding of the German people, rooted in ethnicity and ancestry, is incompatible with the free democratic order. The agency contends that this ethnically defined concept aims to exclude specific population groups from equal participation in society. Specifically, the agency stated that the AfD views German citizens with migration backgrounds, particularly those from Muslim-majority countries, as less worthy members of the German nation as defined by the party’s ethnic criteria.

The agency characterized this exclusionary concept of the German people as the ideological foundation for persistent agitation against specific individuals or groups. This agitation, according to the agency, involves the indiscriminate defamation and disparagement of these individuals or groups, fueling irrational fears and animosity towards them. The agency cited numerous xenophobic, anti-minority, and anti-Muslim statements made by leading AfD figures as evidence of this pattern.

Vice Presidents of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Sinan Selen and Silke Willems, emphasized that statements and positions espoused by the party and leading AfD representatives violate the principle of human dignity, and that this was a crucial factor in the agency’s assessment.

In response to the classification, AfD chairpersons Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla announced their intention to pursue legal action against the designation. They asserted that the party would continue to defend itself legally against what they termed "democracy-endangering defamations," and characterized the agency’s decision as "a severe blow to German democracy."

Stephan Brandner, deputy federal spokesperson for the AfD, denounced the intelligence agency’s decision as a purely political and unfair measure against the only opposition force. He accused established political parties of engaging in a "struggle of cartel parties against the AfD."

Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD), countered these accusations, stating that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has a clear legal mandate to combat extremism and protect Germany’s democracy. She emphasized that the agency operates independently and that the new classification is the result of a comprehensive examination, the findings of which are detailed in a 1,100-page report. Faeser asserted that there was no political influence exerted on the new assessment. She also noted that previous evaluation of the party as a suspected right-wing extremist case has been confirmed by the courts, and that the new assessment will undoubtedly be subject to judicial review.

News reports from February 2021 had previously indicated a possible classification of the entire party as a suspected case. However, the intelligence agency was required to wait approximately one year following a ruling by the Cologne Administrative Court before publicly announcing this assessment and commencing formal observation of the party.

In May 2024, the Higher Administrative Court of Münster ruled that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution was justified in classifying the AfD as a suspected right-wing extremist case. State offices for the protection of the constitution in Thuringia, Saxony, and Saxony-Anhalt had previously classified the respective AfD state-level branches in those three states as confirmed right-wing extremist endeavors. The current designation by the federal agency represents a further escalation of the government’s assessment of the AfD and its potential threat to the German constitutional order. This development is expected to have significant political and legal ramifications for the party and for the broader political landscape in Germany. The legal challenges promised by the AfD will likely be closely watched as they unfold in the coming months and years.