BERLIN: The Alternative for Germany (AfD) claims to be a force of “patriots” but some of its new lawmakers have shocked with xenophobic and revisionist comments and have been linked to far-right groups.
The AfD is the first hard-right nationalist party to enter the German Bundestag in large numbers in the post-World War II era, an epochal event that stunned most Germans.
Since the party’s breakthrough in Sunday’s vote, the country has been scrutinizing the biographies of the often little-known newcomers, elected on a platform of rejecting migrants, Muslims and Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Among them are police officers, prosecutors and judges, academics and business leaders, soldiers and scientists, a one-time radio host, an undertaker and a former fighter pilot.
A disproportionate number are from Germany’s ex-communist and poorer east, where the AfD was the number one party for male voters and won outright in the state of Saxony.
The AfD rails against “traitor” Merkel as public enemy number one, for opening German borders to an “invasion” of more than one million migrants since 2015.
Some MPs have links to PEGIDA, short for Patriots Against the Islamization of the Occident, a street movement that emerged in the Saxony state capital of Dresden.
Other lawmakers have reported links to shadowy fraternities, football hooligans, Russian ultra-nationalists and the nativist Identitarian Movement, which is being watched by the BfV domestic security service.
One has reportedly driven a car with “AH1818” on its number plates, the Tagesspiegel daily wrote — neo-Nazi code for Adolf Hitler’s initials, followed by the number of those letters in the alphabet, listed twice.
And Jens Maier, a judge in Dresden, has drawn fire for voicing a degree of understanding for Norwegian mass murderer Anders Breivik, reportedly saying that he had acted “out of desperation” over multiculturalism when he killed 77 people in 2011.
Still giddy from the election, which made the AfD Germany’s third strongest party, its 93 freshly baked lawmakers gathered this week in a modernist concrete-and-steel annex building to the glass-domed Reichstag that is still pockmarked from Word War II battles.
Lawmaker number 94 stayed away — Frauke Petry, the former face of the AfD, had theatrically walked out of a party press conference the day before to protest against its bitter infighting and radicalization.
Co-Leader Beatrix von Storch, picking up her new parliamentary ID card, said it was time for the party to “get to work.”
Asked whether the AfD, with slogans like “Bikinis not Burkas,” is far right, she replied: “We want to cap refugee numbers, we are against Islamization, we want to preserve our culture, we want to protect our borders.
“We are for the classic family unit, we don’t want a United States of Europe, but a Europe of fatherlands. I think these are perfectly normal topics.”
The MPs include at least 13 with ultra-right views, 30 “nationalist-conservatives,” and 18 comparative “moderates,” according to a count by Die Zeit weekly, which said the allegiances of others were unclear.
Among the new MPs is Leif-Erik Holm, 47, a former radio host who has claimed Germany is being turned “into a caliphate,” and who ran against Merkel in her Baltic Coast electorate.
Merkel lost a lot of votes, he said, but “beating her would have been the icing on the cake.”
Some members are veterans of the AfD’s founding days in 2013, when it railed mainly against eurozone bailouts to crisis-hit Greece.
Others call for tougher law and order, traditional “family values” and fighting against what they consider a left-leaning establishment spreading its lies via a complicit media.
On the far right, leaders have shocked with taboo-breaking comments that challenge Germany’s culture of atonement over World War II and the Holocaust.
One is co-leader Alexander Gauland, 75, a defector from Merkel’s conservative bloc, who has urged Germans to be proud of their veterans from two world wars.
Another, Martin Renner, has criticized Germany’s “guilt cult.”
Asked about the comment, he stuck by the phrase but added that he had only learnt later that it was commonly used by the far-right and anti-Semitic NPD party.
Dozens of members are close to regional party leader Bjoern Hoecke, who has demanded “a 180-degree turn” in Germany’s culture of remembrance and called Berlin’s Holocaust monument a “memorial of shame.”
Anti-migrant, revisionist: Germany’s hard-right AfD
Anti-migrant, revisionist: Germany’s hard-right AfD
Twelve children and teens drown in I.Coast boat capsize: minister
The outing was organized by a Methodist church in Tiaha
ABIDJAN: A boat overturned during a church outing for Easter on a lagoon near the city of Abidjan in Ivory Coast, killing 12 children and teenagers, a government minister told AFP Tuesday.
“Twelve bodies have been recovered and are being taken to the morgue,” said Sports Minister Adje Silas Metch, who went during the night to the site of the accident late Monday.
The bodies are “of children and adolescents,” he added, saying one was a youngster who was not from the church but had joined the boat crossing.
“Four people were rescued,” he said.
Young people from the village of Tiaha had gone to another village to take part in the “Galilee” event to mark the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The outing was organized by a Methodist church in Tiaha, about 60 kilometers (40 miles) from the economic capital, Abidjan, Gerard Gbato, deputy chief of the Dabou police district, told AFP.
“It was on the way back that the tragedy happened. The canoe’s engine stopped at one point, the canoe overturned,” he said.
It is possible the boat was overloaded, he added.
Police have opened an investigation.
Gbato said that such dugout canoes with an engine were commonly used by the local community.
The lagoon winds between the districts of Abidjan and the towns surrounding the metropolis of more than six million inhabitants.
Vance calls for greater ties with India, hails progress on trade talks
- “I believe there is much that India and America can accomplish together,” Vance said
- The Trump administration “seeks trade partners on the basis of fairness and shared national interest
NEW DELHI: US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday called for enhanced engagement with India and said that the South Asian country should buy more defense equipment and energy from the US and allow Washington greater access to its market, lending momentum to an expected bilateral trade deal.
Vance, who is on a four-day visit to India, said that he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi made progress on trade talks during their discussions on Monday, and confirmed that both sides had finalized the terms of reference for the trade negotiation — a vital step toward setting the road map for the final agreement.
India and the US hope to seal a bilateral trade agreement this year and have set an ambitious target of more than doubling their bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. If achieved, the trade deal could significantly enhance economic ties between both countries and potentially strengthen diplomatic ties as well.
“I believe there is much that India and America can accomplish together,” Vance said at an event in the western city of Jaipur, where he, his wife Usha Vance and their three children were on a sightseeing tour.
Vance’s first visit to New Delhi came amid the backdrop of US President Donald Trump’s partially-paused tariff program against most countries, including India. Earlier this month, Trump announced a 90-day pause in which imports from most countries would face a baseline 10 percent tax so that there was time to hold talks and possibly structure broader deals.
The trade negotiations are especially urgent for India and could help New Delhi avoid sharp US tariffs. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has portrayed its strategy of tariffs as forcing negotiations that could limit the reach and influence of China, the world’s dominant manufacturer and New Delhi’s main rival in the region.
At the event, Vance sought to assuage fears over Trump’s tariff decisions and said his administration was seeking to rebalance global trade so that the US, with friends like India, can build a better future. He said that trade relations must be based on fairness.
“I come here with a simple message,” Vance said. The Trump administration “seeks trade partners on the basis of fairness and shared national interest. We want to build relationships with our foreign partners who respect their workers.”
Vance said that he was in India to strengthen ties between both nations, and criticized previous governments for looking at New Delhi as a cheap source of labor.
“I believe that if India and the United States work together successfully, we are going to see a 21st century that is prosperous and peaceful,” he said, adding that if this didn’t happen, it would mean a “dark time for all humanity.”
Washington has long sought to develop a deeper partnership with New Delhi, which is seen as a bulwark against China. Modi has established a good working relationship with Trump, and the two leaders are likely to further boost cooperation between their countries.
Modi was also among the first leaders to visit the US and hold talks with Trump that kickstarted a negotiation process to minimize the possible fallout of Trump’s tariffs. The two leaders also said they planned to grow their defense partnership.
India is a close partner of the US and is part of the Quad, which is made up of the US, India, Japan and Australia, and is seen as a counterbalance to China’s expansion in the region. It is also a major defense partner of the US, a status only enjoyed by some of the closest allies of Washington.
In line with Trump’s push for supplying more military equipment to India, Vance said Washington was seeking greater collaboration with New Delhi for the sale of advanced military gear, as well as coproduction. He also pitched Washington’s fifth-generation stealth fighter to India.
“F-35 will help protect your people like never before,” he said.
Over the past several decades, India has been largely dependent on Russian weapons, fighters and military equipment, but has gradually started diversifying its purchase basket from countries such as the US, France and the UK
In recent years, India has embedded advanced American jets, helicopters, missiles and other equipment into its armed forces and the two countries have announced plans to sign a 10-year framework later this year to further strengthen the defense partnership.
Related
Philippines, UAE sign agreement to combat cybercrime, drug trafficking
- New deal provides ‘strategic framework’ for cooperation, Philippine ambassador says
- UAE is the only country in the Middle East where Philippines has defense attache
MANILA: The Philippines has signed a new security agreement with the UAE to tackle transnational and organized crime, officials said on Tuesday.
Signed by Philippine Interior Secretary Juanito Victor Remulla and UAE Interior Minister Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the new deal focuses on cybercrime, drug trafficking and human trafficking.
“Transnational crimes with global networks powered by new technologies and the ease of cross-border movement of persons and criminal syndicates need more international cooperation and partnerships,” Alfonso Ver, Philippine ambassador to the UAE, told Arab News on Tuesday.
“This is one concrete step to address the growing menace above … We have gone into new and heretofore unexplored areas of bilateral cooperation, moving beyond the issues of OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers), migration and oil.”
The Philippines and the UAE celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations last year.
The two countries have been working to expand security ties over the past few years, with discussions ongoing for a wide-ranging bilateral defense pact.
In 2021, the Philippines posted a defense attache in the UAE, making it the only country in the Middle East where Manila has such representation.
The two countries also signed several treaties on extradition, mutual legal assistance and transfer of prisoners in February.
Ver said the new agreement was a “milestone” that provides a “strategic framework” that will help guide Philippine-UAE “future engagements in a more structured, sustainable, and effective” manner.
It is also expected to promote the exchange of best practices and expertise.
“We discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and develop cooperation in the security and police fields,” Sheikh Saif said in a post on X, referring to his meeting with Remulla.
“This underscores our shared commitment to supporting effective international institutional cooperation to enhance the security and stability of societies.”
Cybercrime and trafficking have been growing concerns for countries like the Philippines.
More than 200 Filipinos were among several thousand people freed in late February and March from online scam centers run by syndicates operating along Myanmar’s border with Thailand, where many of them are believed to have been recruited and trafficked by criminal gangs.
Lured by well-paid job offers in Thailand, they were released in a weeks-long, highly publicized crackdown by Thai, Myanmar and Chinese forces.
Bangladesh’s largest private airline starts Riyadh flights as demand grows
- US-Bangla Airlines offers 5 weekly flights on Dhaka–Riyadh route
- First private Bangladeshi carrier to operate flights to the Kingdom
DHAKA: US-Bangla Airlines, the largest airline in Bangladesh by fleet size, has launched direct flights from Dhaka to Riyadh amid increasing demand for travel to Saudi Arabia.
The inaugural flight from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to King Khalid International Airport took off on Monday, with 423 passengers on board.
The flights will run five times a week on an Airbus 330 aircraft, with plans to gradually expand to daily service.
“Today, also, we are flying with full occupancy. There is always demand for destinations in the Middle East,” Kamrul Islam, the carrier’s general manager for public relations, told Arab News on Tuesday.
“We are receiving very good responses from the passengers ... The route will soon be served by daily flights.”
The airline is tapping into the growing market for Middle East travel. Flights to Saudi Arabia have been too few to accommodate the needs of some 3 million Bangladeshi workers in the Kingdom and hundreds of thousands of people traveling for the annual Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages.
In August last year, it launched daily flights to Jeddah, becoming the first — and so far the only — private Bangladeshi airline to fly to the Kingdom.
“Our aim is to start flight operations gradually in all the destinations where Bangladeshi migrants live,” Islam said.
“In the near future, we are planning to begin flight operations to Dammam and Madinah. Our plan is to begin these flights by the next year. It takes six to seven months of preparations to launch a new station.”
Founded in 2010, US-Bangla Airlines started as a domestic carrier and has lately expanded its routes to go international. The Riyadh route marks the airline’s 14th international destination and sixth in the Middle East.
“Every destination in the Middle East is a base for Bangladeshi migrants,” Islam said.
“We are currently operating also to other places in the region, like Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, and Doha.”
With its latest acquisition of new Airbus A330 and Boeing 737 aircraft last year, the carrier has become the largest airline in Bangladesh by fleet size.
With the additions, the US-Bangla fleet now consists of 24 aircraft, while the national flag carrier Biman has 21.
UN food agency to halt aid for 650,000 women, children in Ethiopia
ADDIS ABABA: The World Food Programme said Tuesday that it was suspending aid for 650,000 malnourished women and children in Ethiopia due to a lack of funding.
“WFP is being forced to halt treatment for 650,000 malnourished women and children in May due to insufficient funding. WFP had planned to reach two million mothers and children with life-saving nutrition assistance in 2025,” the UN agency said in a statement.
