Germany Classifies AfD as ‘Confirmed Right-Wing Extremist’, Opening Door to Increased Surveillance

 Berlin — Germany’s domestic intelligence agency has officially designated the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” organization, a move that significantly escalates scrutiny of the country’s largest opposition force and raises the possibility of future legal action against it.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), based in Cologne, had since 2021 classified the AfD as a “suspected” extremist group. That status has now been upgraded following what the BfV described as conclusive evidence that the party’s ideology contradicts the core principles of Germany’s democratic order.

The BfV concluded that the AfD’s promotion of an “ethnic-ancestry-based understanding” of German identity is incompatible with the constitutional guarantee of equal rights. “The party aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society, to subject them to unconstitutional unequal treatment and thus to assign them a legally devalued status,” the agency said in its official statement.

The reclassification grants authorities greater latitude to monitor the AfD, including authorisation for covert surveillance, tapping communications, and the use of undercover informants.

The decision comes amid growing calls from civil society groups and political leaders for the AfD to be banned altogether. Such a ban would require action by either chamber of the German parliament or the federal government, and would likely spark a lengthy legal process overseen by the Constitutional Court.

The development follows the party’s strong performance in the February general election, where it secured just over 20% of the national vote, finishing second. In recent polls, the AfD has even edged ahead of Chancellor-designate Friedrich Merz’s conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), underscoring the party’s growing influence.

Merz, set to be sworn in as chancellor next week, will lead a centre-right coalition with the Social Democrats. Their governing pact includes a strict commitment to avoid any cooperation with the AfD—an arrangement widely referred to as a “firewall” protecting the democratic system from far-right encroachment.

Despite the AfD’s electoral gains, which entitle it to chair several key parliamentary committees, its ability to do so will depend on the support of other parties—most of which have ruled out collaboration.

Founded in 2013 as a Eurosceptic movement, the AfD has undergone a pronounced shift toward extremism. The party is currently led by Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, who have called for “remigration” policies targeting individuals deemed “poorly integrated”—a category that has included naturalised citizens and residents with foreign ancestry.

The BfV’s 1,100-page case file reportedly documents the party’s hostility toward immigrants and asylum seekers, particularly those from predominantly Muslim countries, as well as its rejection of Germany’s longstanding commitment to Holocaust remembrance. The AfD has been repeatedly accused of using coded or thinly veiled Nazi-era rhetoric, which is criminalised under German law.

The party’s recent electoral victories in Thuringia and other eastern states marked the first time since the Second World War that a far-right party topped a regional poll in Germany. Observers attribute the surge in support to public discontent over immigration, economic stagnation, and broader frustrations with traditional political elites.

The AfD also gained a boost during the election campaign from high-profile endorsements, including one by Elon Musk, an adviser to former U.S. President Donald Trump. The party ultimately recorded the best national result for a far-right formation in Germany since 1945.

Analysts caution that the new German government faces a narrowing window to regain public trust or risk further electoral inroads by the AfD, whose current membership stands at approximately 51,000. The next federal election is scheduled for 2029.