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At Least 200,000 Protesters Rally in Munich against Far-Right AfD Ahead of German Election

Protesters take part in a demonstration against the far right at the Theresienwiese under the motto “Democracy needs you!” in Munich, on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
Protesters take part in a demonstration against the far right at the Theresienwiese under the motto “Democracy needs you!” in Munich, on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
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At Least 200,000 Protesters Rally in Munich against Far-Right AfD Ahead of German Election

Protesters take part in a demonstration against the far right at the Theresienwiese under the motto “Democracy needs you!” in Munich, on February 8, 2025. (AFP)
Protesters take part in a demonstration against the far right at the Theresienwiese under the motto “Democracy needs you!” in Munich, on February 8, 2025. (AFP)

More than 200,000 protesters rallied in Munich, Germany, on Saturday against far-right extremism ahead of the country's general election.

The far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, or AfD, is in second place in recent polls and has prompted widespread protests across the country before voters cast their ballots on Feb. 23.

The protest at Munich's Theresienwiese brought a significantly larger crowd than expected, according to the German dpa news agency. The event's organizer estimated the crowd could be up to 320,000 people, many of whom carried signs against the AfD with slogans like, “Racism and hatred is not an alternative."

The protest was supported by activist groups as well as the Munich Film Festival, churches and Munich soccer clubs FC Bayern and TSV 1860, among others. Police told dpa that the demonstration was peaceful.

Similar protests attracted large crowds on Saturday in Hanover, Rostock, and elsewhere in Germany, mirroring other demonstrations that have occurred across the country in recent weeks.

Last month, at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, a huge crowd blew whistles, sang anti-fascist songs and carried banners denouncing AfD. Activists said they hoped the rally also would draw attention to other far-right parties in Europe and the new administration of US President Donald Trump.

Demonstrators have recently also opposed Friedrich Merz, the center-right leader and front-runner in the upcoming election, and his Christian Democrats for last month sending to parliament proposals for tough new migration rules that received AfD's backing.

The protesters say Merz and his party broke Germany’s unwritten post-Nazi promise by all democratic parties to never pass any rule or resolution in parliament with the support of far-right, nationalist parties like the AfD. Merz insists his position is unchanged and that he didn’t and won’t work with the party.

The 12-year-old AfD entered the national parliament in 2017, benefiting from then-Chancellor Angela Merkel ’s decision two years earlier to allow large numbers of migrants into the country.

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World

Iran Arrests Man Accused of Running Starlink Internet Network

A man leaves a subway train past an image of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP)
A man leaves a subway train past an image of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP)
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Iran Arrests Man Accused of Running Starlink Internet Network

A man leaves a subway train past an image of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP)
A man leaves a subway train past an image of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP)

Iranian authorities have arrested a man accused of leading a network that sold access to the internet via Starlink terminals, a technology that is banned in Iran, the ISNA news agency reported on Friday.

Iran has been digitally sealed off from the rest of the world by a complete internet blackout since the start of the Middle East war.

To get around those restrictions, some Iranians have turned to Starlink terminals from the US company SpaceX, which connect to the internet via satellites.

Doing so is a criminal offence in Iran punishable with prison time.

"A 37-year-old man, who had put in place a network in several provinces of the country to sell access to the unrestricted internet via Starlink, has been arrested" in Shiraz, ISNA reported, citing a deputy police commander for Fars province.

It did not say when the arrest took place.

Iranians were previously placed under an 18-day internet blackout in January, the longest so far, amid anti-government protests during which thousands were killed.

At the time, the authorities managed to disrupt the operation of Starlink terminals.

Under Iranian law, people found guilty of "the use, transportation, purchase or sale of electronic internet communication devices such as Starlink" used to access banned content can be jailed for up to two years in prison.

World

Middle East War ‘Benefits No One and Harms Many’, Merz

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Bardufoss in connection with Cold response 2026, in Bardufoss, Norway, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Bardufoss in connection with Cold response 2026, in Bardufoss, Norway, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
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Middle East War ‘Benefits No One and Harms Many’, Merz

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Bardufoss in connection with Cold response 2026, in Bardufoss, Norway, 13 March 2026. (EPA)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Bardufoss in connection with Cold response 2026, in Bardufoss, Norway, 13 March 2026. (EPA)

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Friday that the Middle East war must end "as soon as possible" as the conflict "benefits no-one and harms many economically, including us".

Asked whether Europeans should make direct contact with Iran to ask for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened, Merz said: "We are making every effort to end this war... all diplomatic channels are being used."

Speaking at a press conference in Norway alongside his Norwegian and Canadian counterparts Jonas Gahr Store and Mark Carney, Merz stressed that Germany shared the "important goals of the United States and Israel".

"Iran must not threaten Israel and other neighbors," Merz said, adding that Tehran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs must end and that the country "must stop supporting terrorism at home and beyond".

However, Merz added that "with each day of war, more questions arise than answers" and that "a convincing plan is needed" on conducting the war.

"We are witnessing a dangerous escalation. Iran is indiscriminately attacking states in the region, including close partners and allies of our own country, Germany," the chancellor said.

"The Strait of Hormuz has become impassable. We condemn this in the strongest possible terms.

"We have no interest in an endless war," Merz added. "We need a perspective for a peaceful order now."

World

Iran’s New Supreme Leader Wounded, Likely Disfigured, Hegseth Says

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a press conference at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, USA, 05 March 2026. (EPA)
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a press conference at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, USA, 05 March 2026. (EPA)
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Iran’s New Supreme Leader Wounded, Likely Disfigured, Hegseth Says

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a press conference at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, USA, 05 March 2026. (EPA)
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a press conference at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, USA, 05 March 2026. (EPA)

Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is wounded and likely disfigured, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday, questioning Khamenei's ability to govern after nearly two weeks of US and Israeli attacks on Iran.

No images have been released of Khamenei since an Israeli strike at the start of the war that killed much of his family, including his father and wife. His first comments came in a statement read out by a television presenter on Thursday. In the statement, he vowed to keep the Strait of Hormuz shut and called ‌on neighboring ‌countries to close US bases on their territory or risk Iran targeting ‌them.

"We ⁠know the new ⁠so-called not so supreme leader is wounded and likely disfigured. He put out a statement yesterday. A weak one, actually, but there was no voice and there was no video. It was a written statement," Hegseth told a briefing.

"Iran has plenty of cameras and plenty of voice recorders. Why a written statement? I think you know why. His father - dead. He's scared, he's injured, he's on the run and he lacks legitimacy."

An Iranian official told Reuters on Wednesday that the newly appointed supreme leader was lightly injured, but ⁠was continuing to operate, after state television described him as war-wounded.

Hegseth was joined ‌by General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs ‌of Staff, at a briefing in which they emphasized US military strikes to knock out Iran's missile and ‌drone capabilities and its navy.

'NO QUARTER'

During the briefing, Hegseth said that the United States would show ‌no mercy in the war.

"We will keep pressing, keep pushing, keep advancing. No quarter, no mercy for our enemy," Hegseth said.

"No quarter" is the refusal to spare the life of someone who has expressed their intention to surrender - something prohibited by law.

"International humanitarian law prohibits the use of this procedure, that is, ordering that there shall ‌be no survivors, threatening the adversary therewith, or conducting hostilities on this basis," according to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Hegseth has moved to ⁠reshape the top ranks ⁠of the military justice system, replacing the judge advocates general for the Army, Navy and Air Force.

The United States has carried out strikes against more than 6,000 targets in Iran over the past 14 days. Almost two weeks of US-Israeli bombings have killed around 2,000 people in Iran.

A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Pentagon was sending an additional warship, along with the Marines on board, to the Middle East. The Pentagon has previously said additional troops would be heading to the region.

But despite the US attacks on Iran, more Iranian drones were reported flying into Kuwait, Iraq, the UAE, Bahrain and Oman. Additionally, six US service members were killed on Friday when a US military refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq, in an incident the US said involved another aircraft but was not the result of hostile or friendly fire.

Since the US and Israel started carrying out strikes against Iran on February 28, 11 US troops have been killed.