Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

German political party Alternative für Deutschland proposes banning mosques

The party claims 'Islam does not belong in Germany' and is seeking 'world domination'

Siobhan Fenton
Wednesday 30 March 2016 14:38 BST
Comments
Alternative for Germany (AfD) has held protest marches as part of its election campaign
Alternative for Germany (AfD) has held protest marches as part of its election campaign (EPA)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A right-wing political party has called for mosques to be banned, it has been reported.

Alternative für Deutschland (Alternative for Germany) has drafted the proposals to ban “the construction and operation” of mosques. The proposals are contained within a 45-page long draft document titled ‘Courage to take responsibility’ and will be put to the party conference next month for consideration, Deutsche Welle reports.

It states that “Islam does not belong to Germany” and seeks “world domination”. It claims that the Koran permits “lies and deception” and that mosques contribute: “not only to common prayer, but also to the spread of Islamic teachings directed towards the removal of our legal order.”

The party has a reputation in Germany for being far-right, anti-Islam and anti-refugees. AfD’s leader Frauke Petry caused controversy last month when she argued for shooting refugees at the borders of Germany to stop them from entering. The party has also been fiercely critical of the government’s policy to welcome migrants and refugees, citing concerns about integration and social stability.

It is estimated that around four million of Germany’s 80 million inhabitants are Muslim. It has the second largest Muslim minority population of any European country, second to France which has a population of five million Muslims. This has increased in recent months due to the number of refugees which Germany has accepted, 45 per cent of whom come from Syria.

Last year, Germany accepted more than a million refugees. Thus far this year, it has accepted more than 100,000.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in