DRESDEN, Germany
Thousands of people took to the streets in the eastern German city of Dresden Monday in the aftermath of a deadly attack on a satirical magazine in Paris.
Dresden police said that more than 25,000 people participated in the "Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West" rally, making it the largest anti-Islam demonstration by the right-wing populist group since the demonstrations first started in October 2014.
The protest started with a silent homage to those killed in the Paris attacks. Protesters also waved the flags of France, Norway, Sweden, Brandenburg State and Saxony State.
Meanwhile, 8,500 people attended an anti-PEGIDA demonstration in Dresden to protest against the right-wing populist group and on Saturday, around 35,000 protesters also attended a rally in the same city to protest against the right-wing group.
PEGIDA's rise has recently made headlines in Germany and abroad. The group started weekly protests in Dresden with around 500 demonstrators, but significantly increased its support base within three months.
PEGIDA has inspired several copycat groups in other major German cities, like KOEGIDA in Cologne, HAGIDA in Hamburg and BAERGIDA in Berlin.
Germany saw an increase in suspicion and negative feelings toward Muslims in recent months as far right and right-wing populist parties sought to benefit from a growing fear of Islam and Muslims, largely influenced by reports of atrocities committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group in the Middle East.
According to a poll on Thursday, 29 percent of Germans said that Islam was such a big influence on the daily lives of Germans that the recent anti-Islam demonstrations, such as the ones organized by PEGIDA, were justifiable.
Thirteen percent also said they would join protests if they were organized in their cities.
