More than 17,000 people have marched on the German city of Dresden protesting the “Islamification of Europe” as a wave of xenophobia sweeps the country.
Supports of Pegida – a growing group calling itself the “Patriotic Europeans against the Islamification of the West” – filled the city’s historic square singing Christmas carols and waving German flags on Monday.
Its leaders have been dismissed as “Nazis in pinstripes” and the group’s rise has coincided with arson attacks on refugee hostels and the daubing of swastikas on city walls, but the controversy has not dissuaded supporters.
“We are the people,” a post on the group’s Facebook page proclaimed after Monday’s protest, claiming a record attendance of more than 20,000 people.
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More than 17,000 people have marched on the German city of Dresden protesting the “Islamification of Europe” as a wave of xenophobia sweeps the country.
Supports of Pegida – a growing group calling itself the “Patriotic Europeans against the Islamification of the West” – filled the city’s historic square singing Christmas carols and waving German flags on Monday.
Its leaders have been dismissed as “Nazis in pinstripes” and the group’s rise has coincided with arson attacks on refugee hostels and the daubing of swastikas on city walls, but the controversy has not dissuaded supporters.
“We are the people,” a post on the group’s Facebook page proclaimed after Monday’s protest, claiming a record attendance of more than 20,000 people.
It is the latest in a string of weekly rallies around Germany against perceived rising immigration and “extremism” that started in October.
Munich has seen 15,000 people demonstrating with Pegida, while thousands more have joined counter demonstrations that saw the same number of anti-fascist protesters chanting “no Nazis here” in Cologne.