Landmark Ruling in Cologne: AfD Wins Against Intelligence Agency in Extremist Label Case

The Cologne Administrative Court issued a ruling that temporarily blocks the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution from classifying the party Alternative for Germany as an organization with a confirmed far-right character. This decision was made as an interim measure and remains in effect until the main legal dispute is resolved. The judges ruled that the evidence gathered by the domestic intelligence agency, while indicating the existence of anti-constitutional aspirations within the party, is insufficient to attribute them to the entire, complex structure of the party. This ruling prevents the services from automatically extending surveillance to the most invasive methods, reserved for groups openly seeking to overthrow the democratic order. The verdict triggered an immediate wave of commentary in Berlin. AfD leader Alice Weidel called the court's decision a "great triumph for the rule of law" and proof that the government's actions against her party are purely politically motivated. Meanwhile, politicians from the governing parties and the Christian Democrats are trying to calm the mood. Alexander Dobrindt of the CSU emphasized that the ruling concerns only a formal classification issue, not a substantive clearance of the party from accusations of radicalism. The court maintained AfD's status as a "suspected case," which still allows security agencies to conduct operational surveillance, albeit within a narrower scope of authority. According to the German Basic Law of 1949, the freedom of political parties is subject to special protection, and their ban or drastic restriction of rights is only possible after the Federal Constitutional Court proves that a given party actively combats the liberal democratic order.The situation remains particularly tense in eastern states such as Thuringia, where local AfD branches have long been classified as far-right by regional intelligence services. Georg Maier, the Interior Minister of Thuringia, had previously advocated for considering a ban on AfD's activities, citing suspicions of the party's cooperation with Russian intelligence. Although the Cologne ruling concerns federal structures, Maier maintains a critical stance towards the radical actions of the party in the eastern states. Legal experts point out that Thursday's ruling may prompt the government to be more cautious in the evidence-gathering process before potentially submitting a request for a complete ban on the party's activities to the highest judicial instance in Karlsruhe. „Das ist ein großer Triumph für den Rechtsstaat und die Freiheit gegenüber Versuchen, den Verfassungsschutz parteipolitisch gegen die Opposition zu instrumentalisieren.” (This is a great triumph for the rule of law and freedom against attempts to instrumentalize the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in a partisan manner against the opposition.) — AfD leader Alice Weidel