Country Report: Germany August 2026
- Genocide Watch
- 2 hours ago
- 2 min read
By: Alexander Smith
Germany’s history of genocide began during its colonial rule of German South West Africa (GSWA), which Germany acquired at the Berlin Conference. Settlers forcibly took indigenous lands, massacred those that resisted German rule, established labor camps, and raped women and girls. The Herero and Nama peoples led a rebellion, killing approximately 100 German settlers. In response, German General Lothar von Trotha ordered the systematic execution of all Herero and Nama people. Between 1904 and 1907, the German army decimated over 80% of the Herero and 50% of the Nama populations, forever changing the demographics in present-day Namibia.
Nazi policymakers later drew inspiration from the Herero and Nama genocide. After World War I, Adolf Hitler seized on rising antisemitism to bring the Nazi Party huge electoral victories. After President Hindenburg appointed him Chancellor in 1933, Hitler established a fascist dictatorship targeting Jews, mentally and physically disabled persons, Slavs and Poles, communists, and other political enemies. By 1945, Hitler’s regime had murdered six million Jews and five million other targeted peoples.
Germany’s reconciliation efforts remain incomplete. In May 2021, Germany agreed to pay $1.1 billion in reconstructive funds to the Namibian government, but critics argue that the agreement fails to provide adequate reparations as required under international law. Herero and Nama genocide descendants continue to demand a role in negotiations. Since reunification, Germany has institutionalized Holocaust acknowledgment by building memorials, telling its history in school curricula, and banning Nazi memorabhilia and glorification.
Neo-Nazi activity and xenophobia remain serious problems in Germany. According to German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, hate crimes in Germany have doubled over the past decade. Far-right sympathizers have infiltrated Germany’s police force and social media. Antisemitic incidents spiked from 4,782 cases in 2024 to more than 8,000 in 2025, while anti-Muslim incidents hit record-highs. The 40-year separation between East and West Germany left lasting wealth, education, and representation gaps that the far-right exploits. Scholars and political experts warn about Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) – a political party that has seen candidates mimic Nazi slogans, minimize Germany’s role in the Holocaust, and plot to overthrow the government. AfD now polls highest among Germany’s political parties.
Germany’s current ruling parties, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU), have increasingly adopted far-right positions on migration. They have promised to suspend family reunification for migrants with subsidiary protection and coordinate asylum rejections at the border. This past January CDU/CSU violated the Brandmauer, a firewall against far-right collaboration, to vote with the AfD on an immigration bill.
Given the growing influence of right-wing extremist political actors and increase in hate crimes, Genocide Watch considers Germany to be at Stage 6: Polarization.
Genocide Watch recommends:
The German government must integrate demands from descendants of the Herero and Nama genocide in ongoing and future reparations negotiations.
Independent candidates should run for local government in eastern Germany, the AfD’s geographic stronghold, and combat rising far-right extremism without feeding AfD rhetoric.
German police and intelligence services must crack down on far-right extremist networks and combat the spread of violent ideologies on social media.
