The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the anti-Islam Pegida movement both held demos in Dresden at the same place on Monday, raising questions about the groups coming closer together. But while the Pegida side called the demos a "double event", the local AfD leadership insisted that the rallies were separate, according to Tag24. The state AfD branch and national party leader Frauke Petry have voiced opposition to joint events with Pegida, with the national party leadership banning AfD members from appearing at Pegida demos. Pegida leader Lutz Bachmann - who did not appear on Monday - has also in the past often offered his stage to the AfD to use as a platform. But we have always kept a distance from the Pegida leadership," Petry said in an interview with Der Westen last year.

Source: The Local May 09, 2017 09:22 UTC