Germany’s intelligence service officially classifies the AfD as a right-wing extremist party, enabling nationwide surveillance.
Germany’s domestic intelligence agency has designated the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party as a “right-wing extremist” organization, granting authorities expanded powers to monitor its operations nationwide, The Associated Press reported on Friday.
The decision follows months of internal assessments and raises the stakes for one of Germany’s most influential political movements.
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) stated Friday that the AfD poses a fundamental threat to the democratic system. According to the agency, the party “disregards human dignity,” particularly through persistent rhetoric targeting migrants and asylum seekers.
“It aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society, subject them to unconstitutional discrimination, and thus assign them a legally devalued status,” the BfV said. The agency also concluded that the party’s understanding of national identity, rooted in ethnic exclusivity, is “incompatible with the free democratic basic order.”
With this designation, German authorities may now employ a range of surveillance tools—including informants and audiovisual monitoring—on AfD activities. While the move falls short of a legal ban, it places the party under intensified scrutiny.
Party leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla condemned the classification, describing it as “a severe blow to German democracy.” They argued the decision is politically charged and aimed at weakening the AfD’s growing popularity.
“The AfD will continue to legally defend itself against these democracy-endangering defamations,” the party leadership declared.
AfD, which was formed in 2013, entered Germany’s national parliament with 12.6% of the vote in 2017.
The party has a history of controversial statements, particularly surrounding the Holocaust. The party’s leader, Björn Höcke, caused a firestorm in February of 2017 when he suggested that Germany should end its decades-long tradition of acknowledging and atoning for its Nazi past.
AfD chairman Alexander Gauland in 2018 described the Nazi period as a mere “speck of bird poo in over 1,000 years of successful German history”.
He had previously asserted, however, that Jews should not fear the strong election showing by AfD and indicated that he was ready to meet with German Jewish leaders “at any time.”
Late last year, AfD announced its decision to dissolve and replace its youth wing, the Junge Alternative (“Young Alternative”), which has been classified as an extremist group by German intelligence services.
The move to label AfD an extremist group has drawn criticism beyond Germany. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed strong opposition to the decision on social media. “Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition,” he posted. “That’s not democracy—it’s tyranny in disguise. Germany should reverse course.”
