Germany Opposes AfD Ban Amid Bremen Retreat; Police Bar AfD Members; Weidel Pushes Migration Policy and Rainbow Flag Ban

Germany's political and law enforcement landscape is witnessing intensified scrutiny and restrictions targeting members of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. While Germany's Interior Minister acknowledges the AfD as right-wing extremist, he opposes banning the party, noting that only the Federal Constitutional Court can impose such a ban. In Bremen, political factions including CDU, SPD, Greens, and Left initially supported an AfD ban procedure but retreated following concerns over weaknesses in the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's report. The Federal Police Commissioner has declared that AfD membership is incompatible with police service, a stance echoed by Bundestag police commissioner Uli Grötsch (SPD), who advocates for the removal of all AfD members from police roles.

This has sparked accusations of politicization of official duties. Additionally, restrictions on AfD members extend beyond policing, including barring them from legal education, police employment, parliamentary salaries in Rhineland-Palatinate, and legal firearm ownership. AfD spokeswoman Alice Weidel continues to promote a stringent migration policy and opposes current naturalization trends, while also calling for the prohibition of rainbow flags on public buildings, a proposal that lacks broader support. Criticism has also been directed at former Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution head Hans-Georg Maaßen for alleged right-wing extremism linked to his comments on U.S. President Joe Biden. Bavarian politician Alexander Dobrindt has dismissed the constitutional protection report on the AfD as inadequate to justify a ban.