News / Germany

Germans stage anti-NATO protest in Munich

Sunday, 14 February 2016 5:44 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 14 February 2016 6:11 AM ]

A screen grab from a Ruptly video shows people protesting against NATO in Munich, Germany, February 13, 2016.

Hundreds of Germans have held a demonstration to express their outrage at the warmongering policies of NATO and the West in the Middle East, where they have been engaged in a so-called anti-Daesh bombing campaign.

According to reports, some 2,000 anti-war protesters took to the streets of Munich, where the 52nd Munich Security Conference (MSC) was underway, saying the meeting had nothing to do with peace and security.

The protesters held banners reading, “North Atlantic Terror Organization,” “End the terror war” and “Abolish the Bundeswehr,” referring to the German armed forces.

The demonstrators also warned Germany against any ground intervention in the crisis-hit Syria.

A large number of police officers were deployed to prevent clashes during the rally.

Saturday’s event come as foreign ministers and policymakers from some 70 countries were in Munich to discuss the refugee crisis, the crisis in Syria and a host of other pressing security issues.

“In fact, it’s an insecurity conference. They are planning coming wars and they are planning how to proceed with the current wars. This has absolutely nothing to do with peace,” said a protester.

A screen grab from a Ruptly video shows people protesting against NATO in Munich, Germany, February 13, 2016.

The US and its allies have been conducting air raids against what they claim to be Daesh terrorist elements inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate since September 2014. They are also involved in a similar military campaign in neighboring Iraq.

The US-led strikes have, on many occasions, targeted the two countries’ infrastructure and left many civilians dead.

On February 11, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said NATO may join the Washington-led coalition. All 28 members of the Western military alliance are individually part of the so-called anti-Daesh mission.

This is while members of the same international coalition, which are staunchly opposed to the Damascus government, have significantly contributed to the bloodshed in Syria by supporting Takfiri militants fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad since 2011.

Earlier this week, NATO defense ministers agreed to a plan to beef up the Western military alliance’s presence in Eastern Europe, citing perceived threats from Russia.

This as Moscow has on many occasions slammed the Western military alliance’s expansion near its borders, saying such a move poses a threat to both regional and international peace.

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