German MP was seriously injured in a “politically motivated” gang attack in the north of the country, police said Tuesday.

 Frank Magnitz, leader in Bremen of the anti-immigration populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD), was assaulted in the city centre on Monday afternoon. “Given the victim´s work, we believe that this is a politically motivated act,” police said.—AFP</s>BERLIN
• A far-right German MP was seriously injured in a "politically motivated" gang attack in the north of the country, police said yesterday.

Mr Frank Magnitz, leader in Bremen of the anti-immigration populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD), was assaulted in the city centre on Monday afternoon.

"Given the victim's work, we believe that this is a politically motivated act," the police said.

The AfD party published a photograph of Mr Magnitz unconscious on a hospital bed, his face bleeding and swollen with a gash on his forehead.

It said three masked men had carried out the attack.

"They hit him with a piece of wood until he was unconscious and then kicked him on the ground," a statement from the party said, adding that a construction worker had intervened to stop the assault. "Today is a dark day for democracy in Germany."

AfD leader Joerg Meuthen tweeted that Mr Magnitz was "beaten almost to death" in a "cowardly and sickening" attack.

Mr Johannes Kahrs, an MP from the Social Democrats, junior partners in the ruling coalition, said that "violence is never acceptable" and that "extremism in any form is rubbish".

Mr Cem Ozdemir of the opposition Greens party said he hoped those responsible could be "found and convicted soon" and that "nothing justifies violence".

"Those who fight hate with hate only allow hate to win in the end," added the politician, who is of Turkish origin.

Last week, an explosive device detonated in a rubbish bin damaged an AfD office in Saxony. Three suspects were detained.

And last weekend in Lower Saxony, the home of a local AfD politician was targeted with graffiti while a party office was attacked with a paint bomb.

The AfD entered Germany's Parliament with almost 13 per cent of the vote in September 2017, making it the strongest opposition party in the Bundestag Lower House.

The party is expected to make gains in European elections in May and three regional polls in the former communist east later this year.</s>Berlin: A lawmaker from the far-right Alternative for Germany party was attacked and seriously wounded by several men in the northwestern city of Bremen in what police said on Tuesday may have been a politically motivated assault.

The beating of Frank Magnitz, a lawmaker in the national parliament who leads the party's branch in Bremen, drew condemnation from across the political spectrum.

"There's zero tolerance for violence, whoever is affected and wherever the violence comes from," German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer told The Associated Press.

"We need to do everything to find the culprits and hold them to account."</s>A regional far-right leader in Germany was seriously injured following an allegedly politically-motivated attack carried out by a group of masked men in the northwestern city of Bremen, party officials said Tuesday.

Frank Magnitz, Alternative for Germany's leader in Bremen and a member of the national parliament, the Bundestag, was assaulted Monday by three masked men, who allegedly knocked the politician unconscious with a block of wood before kicking him in the head.</s>A local leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany has been attacked and wounded by several people in the northwestern city of Bremen, an assault that drew condemnation from some of the party's fiercest opponents.

Bremen police said they believe the attack on Frank Magnitz, a lawmaker in Germany's national parliament who leads the party's local branch, was politically motivated.

They called for witnesses to the attack, which took place early on Monday evening near a city theatre, to come forward.

The party, known by its German acronym AfD, said early on Tuesday that Magnitz was ambushed by three masked men after he left a local newspaper's new year's reception, beaten unconscious with a piece of wood and then kicked in the head as he lay on the ground. He has been hospitalised.

Bremen, Germany's smallest state, holds a regional election on May 26, the same day as European Parliament elections in which AfD hopes to make gains.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman, Steffen Seibert, wrote on Twitter that "the brutal attack on lawmaker Frank Magnitz in Bremen must be strongly condemned. Hopefully police will quickly succeed in catching the perpetrators."

Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, a centre-left politician who has been a strong critic of AfD, tweeted that "violence must never be a means of political confrontation - no matter against whom or what the motives are."

"There is no justification for this," he said, calling for those responsible to be punished.

That was echoed by other politicians from established parties, including prominent Green party politician Cem Ozdemir, who said that AfD must be countered by legal means, not violence. "Anyone who fights hatred with hatred always lets hatred win in the end," he wrote on Twitter.

AfD is represented in all of Germany's 16 state parliaments. It entered the national parliament in 2017 and is currently the biggest opposition party there.

AfD views the country's established political parties with contempt, and the feeling is mutual.

"The cowardly and life-threatening attack against Frank Magnitz is the result of constant agitation against us by politicians and media," party co-leaders Alexander Gauland and Joerg Meuthen said in a statement.</s>A far-right German MP who was 'beaten almost to death' by three hooded men says the attack may not have been political - despite what police think.

Frank Magnitz, who leads the Bremen branch of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, said the attack 'may have been a robbery'.

Magnitz also refused to blame 'the left' or 'Antifa' for the attack as he spoke to Germany's Bild newspaper from his hospital bed on Tuesday.

That is not the conclusion of the Bremen police, however, who are investigating the assault as a politically motivated incident.

In a brief interview with the newspaper, Magnitz explained the extent of his injuries - saying his entire left side hurts and his forehead has been split open to the bone by a vicious blow.

He said that doctors have prescribed him bed rest and are keeping him readily supplied with painkillers until his wounds heal.

Magnitz said he feels fine while recovering in hospital, but revealed he is uncertain about going out again in the dark.

'I will change my behavior in public and be more careful in the future,' he said.

The assault on Magnitz drew condemnation from across the German political spectrum, including from Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Party leader Joerg Meuthen said the 66-year-old was 'beaten almost to death' in a 'cowardly and sickening' attack.

Bremen police said they believe the attack was politically motivated and called for witnesses to the incident, which took place around 5.20pm on Monday near a theater in central Bremen.

Magnitz was beaten over the head with a not-officially-identified object, by at least three men wearing dark clothing and hoods or hats, who then fled, police said.

Two construction workers who were loading a car nearby found him lying on the ground and called an ambulance

'They hit him with a piece of wood until he was unconscious and then kicked him on the ground,' AfD said in a statement, adding that 'today is a dark day for democracy in Germany.'

The party said Magnitz was ambushed after he left a Bremen newspaper's new year's reception.

'It was clearly an attempt to murder Mr. Magnitz,' AfD co-leader Alexander Gauland told reporters in Berlin.

'This is the result of the ostracism and agitation AfD faces,' he said, suggesting other parties were partly responsible for the attack because they had compared AfD to Adolf Hitler's Nazi party.

Magnitz is associated with the extreme right of the party, including its firebrand leader in the eastern state of Thuringia, Bjoern Hoecke.

Magnitz told the dpa news agency he had been told he would need to remain hospitalized until the weekend and had little memory of the attack.

He added that while he had received threats, he hadn't considered any of them concrete.

Chancellor Angela Merkel led cross-party condemnations of the assault, as her spokesman Steffen Seibert wrote on Twitter that the 'brutal attack' was 'to be condemned sharply'.

'Hopefully the police will succeed in catching the perpetrators quickly,' he wrote.

AfD leader Joerg Meuthen tweeted that Magnitz was 'beaten almost to death' in a 'cowardly and sickening' attack.

Johannes Kahrs, an MP from the Social Democrats, junior partners in the ruling coalition, said 'violence is never acceptable' and that 'extremism in any form is rubbish'. He wished Magnitz a quick recovery.

Cem Ozdemir of the opposition Greens party said he hoped those responsible could be 'found and convicted soon' and that, even against a far-right party, 'nothing justifies violence'.

'Those who fight hate with hate only allow hate to win in the end,' said the politician of Turkish origin.

AfD is represented in all of Germany's 16 state parliaments. It entered the national parliament in 2017 and is currently the biggest opposition party there. It views the country's established political parties with contempt, and the feeling is mutual.

The party took 10 percent of the vote in Bremen in the 2017 national election, below its nationwide result of 12.6 percent.

Bremen is not considered an AfD stronghold, unlike three states in Germany's ex-communist east that hold regional votes in September and October.

The party claims there have been 'hundreds' of attacks against its officers and members since its founding in 2013.

Last week, an explosive device detonated in a rubbish bin damaged an AfD office in Saxony. Three suspects were detained.

And last weekend in Lower Saxony, the home of a local AfD politician was targeted with graffiti and a party office was attacked with a paint bomb.</s>BERLIN : A far-right German MP was seriously injured in a "politically motivated" gang attack in the north of the country, the police said yesterday.

Mr Frank Magnitz, leader in Bremen of the anti-immigration populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD), was assaulted in the city centre on Monday afternoon.

"Given the victim's work, we believe this is a politically motivated act," the police said.

AfD published a photo of Mr Magnitz unconscious on a hospital bed, his face bleeding and swollen with a gash on his forehead. It said three masked men had carried out the attack.

"They hit him with a piece of wood until he was unconscious and then kicked him on the ground," a statement from the party said, adding that a construction worker had intervened to stop the assault.

"Today is a dark day for democracy in Germany."

AfD leader Joerg Meuthen tweeted that Mr Magnitz was "beaten almost to death" in a "cowardly and sickening" attack.

Mr Johannes Kahrs, an MP from the Social Democrats, junior partners in the ruling coalition, said "violence is never acceptable" and "extremism in any form is rubbish". He wished Mr Magnitz a quick recovery.

Mr Cem Ozdemir of the opposition Greens party said he hoped those responsible could be "found and convicted soon" and that, even against a far-right party, "nothing justifies violence".

"Those who fight hate with hate only allow hate to win in the end," said the politician of Turkish origin.

Last week, an explosive device detonated in a rubbish bin damaged an AfD office in Saxony. Three suspects were detained.

And last weekend in Lower Saxony, the home of a local AfD politician was targeted with graffiti and a party office was attacked with a paint bomb.</s>A local leader of the Alternative for Germany party has been attacked and injured in the city of Bremen.

A local leader of the Alternative for Germany party has been attacked and injured in the city of Bremen.

Alternative for Germany politician in hospital after being injured in attack

Bremen police said they believe the attack on Frank Magnitz, an MP in Germany’s national parliament who leads the party’s local branch, was politically motivated.

They called for witnesses to the attack, which took place early on Monday evening near a city theatre, to come forward.

Mr Magnitz was beaten over the head with an unidentified object by at least three men wearing dark clothing and hoods or hats, who then fled, police said.

Two workers who were loading a car nearby found him lying on the ground and called an ambulance. The 66-year-old was taken to hospital.

The party, known by its German acronym AfD, said earlier that he was ambushed by three masked men, beaten unconscious with a piece of wood and then kicked in the head.

Bremen, Germany’s smallest state, holds a regional election on May 26, the same day as European Parliament elections in which AfD hopes to make gains.

Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who has been a strong critic of AfD, tweeted: “Violence must never be a means of political confrontation — no matter against whom or what the motives are.”

“There is no justification for this,” he said, calling for those responsible to be punished.

That was echoed by other politicians from established parties, including prominent Green party politician Cem Ozdemir, who said that AfD must be countered by legal means, not violence.

“Anyone who fights hatred with hatred always lets hatred win in the end,” he wrote on Twitter.

AfD is represented in all of Germany’s 16 state parliaments. It entered the national parliament in 2017 and is currently the biggest opposition party there.</s>Image copyright Bundestag Image caption Mr Magnitz had just left a new year event in Bremen when he was attacked

German far-right politician Frank Magnitz has been beaten up and severely injured in an attack seen by police as politically motivated.

The leader of Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Bremen was attacked by at least three masked men in the centre of the northern city on Monday.

The attackers knocked him unconscious with a piece of wood and kicked him in the head, AfD officials said.

The government and politicians across the spectrum condemned the attack.

What happened in Bremen?

Mr Magnitz, 66, had just left a new year reception in Bremen's Kunsthalle art museum when he was attacked in the city's Goetheplatz as he walked to a central car park.

Police said he was beaten over the head with an unknown object by three men who then fled.

Two local tradesman came to his aid and he was taken to hospital.

Speaking from hospital on Tuesday, Mr Magnitz said he had little memory of what happened.

Joint party leader Alice Weidel described the incident as an "assassination attempt" while local officials in Bremen blamed "incitement" from the centre-left SPD and Green parties.

Image copyright AFD Image caption This edited picture shows Frank Magnitz in hospital after what Mr Meuthen called "a cowardly and sickening attack"

Another party spokesman, Jörg Meuthen, tweeted a photo of Mr Magnitz lying unconscious in his hospital bed and said he had been left "half-dead".

He had a big gash on his forehead and severe bruising around his right eye.

AfD entered the national parliament (Bundestag) for the first time last year with 94 seats and now has representatives in every German state parliament.

Its anti-immigration platform has struck a chord, particularly in eastern Germany where it hopes to make gains in three state elections this year. AfD is also eyeing the May 2019 European Parliament elections.

Last week an AfD office in the eastern town of Döbeln was damaged by an explosion. No-one was hurt.

SPD leader Andrea Nahles said that AfD was a "political opponent" of Germany's tolerant society but anyone trying to fight it with violence "betrays these values and jeopardises our co-existence".</s>BERLIN (Reuters) - Prosecutors on Wednesday refuted an account of an assault against a lawmaker for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party that sparked public outrage, saying video images showed he was not attacked with wooden bars as initially claimed.

The party acknowledged that initial reports of the incident appeared to be mistaken.

Frank Magnitz, who was released from hospital in the northern city of Bremen on Wednesday, told the newspaper Die Welt that Monday’s attack was likely carried out by extremist leftists and constituted an assassination attempt.

The AfD had posted a picture on Twitter supposedly showing Magnitz on a stretcher with a deep wound to his forehead and a bruised left eye, and it said the attack was carried out by three individuals.

On Wednesday, a spokesman for the Bremen prosecutor’s office said video images showed that one of three unidentified men had jumped on Magnitz from behind - causing him to fall to the ground - before running away.

“We believe that all the injuries resulted from the fall,” the spokesman Frank Passade told German broadcaster ARD. He said there was no evidence that Magnitz had been attacked with a wooden bar or that he was kicked in the head.

An AfD spokesman told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper chain that the party would have written a different news release based on its current information. He said the claim that wooden bars were used to attack Magnitz came from a construction worker on the scene who had not been heard from since.

Politicians from across the political spectrum had condemned the attack and urged police to bring those responsible to justice.

Police are continuing to investigate the incident and described it as a politically motivated attack.
German politician Frank Magnitz, a member of the AfD party, was beaten unconscious by three masked assailants in the city of Bremen on Monday. AfD party leader Alice Weidel calls the attack an "assassination attempt" and politicians from other German parties condemn the attack.