Germany's justice minister on Sunday urged the group called Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West (PEGIDA) to cancel its demonstration, but the group vowed to go ahead with a rally that will commemorate the 17 people killed in the Paris attacks.
The group has held weekly rallies to protest Germany's growing immigrant population, mainly Muslims fleeing the war in Syria in recent years.
"It's outrageous they want to commemorate victims that until last week they insulted as liars," Justice Minister Heiko Maas told the popular tabloid Bild, calling for the group to cancel Monday's rally.
Many fear another march by the group could stoke violence and anti-immigration sentiment after Wednesday's attack at the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
"The people at the heart of PEGIDA must be delighted," said Mohammed Majoka, a spokesman for the Muslim group Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat Germany. "This is what they have been trying to show people all along, that Islam is dangerous and Muslims should be kicked out." » | Angela Waters | Special for USA TODAY | Sunday, January 11, 2015
