Neo-Nazis Rally Against Kohl and Foreigners

Skinheads sang nationalistic hymns at a rally Friday and cheered speakers who railed against foreigners and Chancellor Helmut Kohl.

The neo-Nazis, mostly young and male, gathered to criticize the government for putting “foreign interests” ahead of German workers.

Although the extreme-right National Democratic Party of Germany, or NPD, had expected 15,000 people, Friday’s rally of less than 4,000 was still one of the biggest neo-Nazi gatherings in years.

At the same time, an estimated 5,000 leftists marched through Leipzig to protest right-wing extremism, some carrying signs reading “Death to the fascists” and “Stop the Nazis.”

Police moved in after leftists hurled rocks and bottles at police lines, witnesses said. Police also used truncheons to beat back rightists who threw bottles and stones and tried to attack leftists and journalists.

Water cannons were used on dozens of rioting left-wing extremists to keep them from the park where the neo-Nazi rally was being held.

At least three officers were injured in skirmishes, 27 demonstrators from both sides were arrested, and 67 protesters were temporarily detained.

Holger Apfel, head of the NPD’s youth wing, was cheered when he urged the government to deport foreigners he accused of stealing jobs from Germans or milking the country’s welfare system.

“Radical problems require radical solutions!” he shouted.