Several thousand people took to the streets of Berlin and other German cities on Monday night to protest their opposition to the anti-Islam movement Pegida.
It happened amid a lot of political soul-searching after a pro-Pegida march in Dresden was cancelled because of a terrorist threat.
Angela Merkel has previously condemned the group in strong language as “racists with hatred in their hearts”.
But now she and other politicians are embarrassed.
“As German Chancellor – regardless of whether I like the content – I have to ensure that anywhere in Germany people can take to the streets in demonstrations because it is a fundamental right,” Merkel said on Monday.
Police in Dresden, Pegida’s birthplace, banned all outdoor public gatherings on Monday.
It came after the authorities said they had specific warnings of a terror attack.
Pegida said it was a death threat against its founder, Lutz Bachmann.
He seemed unfazed, telling a news conference:
“Hopefully there will be anothe