Hape Kerkeling condemns AfD's Nazi-softening stance at Thuringia parliamentary hearing

The Thuringian Landtag held its inaugural public session to consider a ban on the AfD, featuring constitutional experts, ex-head of domestic intelligence Hans-Georg Maaßen and comedian Hape Kerkeling. In a five-minute opening, Kerkeling described speaking before the parliament as an honor and highlighted his lineage as a descendant of Nazi-era victims. He asserted that the AfD’s tendency to downplay the Nazi dictatorship renders it unconstitutional and that its existence is fueled by minority-targeted hatred.

Emphasising the antifascist foundation of the Basic Law, he warned that tolerating such rhetoric endangers democracy. The AfD’s own representative, Daniel Haseloff, declined to participate in the questioning round, labeling the proceeding a political process.