Firewall compromised: has Friedrich Merz blown ‘democracy’s last shot’?

Demonstrators at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on Monday to protest against the rise of the far-right AfD party. Photograph: T Seeliger/ hutterstock Demonstrators at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on Monday to protest against the rise of the far-right AfD party. Photograph: T Seeliger/ hutterstock Germany Firewall compromised: has Friedrich Merz blown ‘democracy’s last shot’? Many fear chancellor is wrong man for the job at a time when Germany’s defences against far right are crumbling

Deborah Cole in Berlin Sat 12 Sep 2026 00.00 EDT Share Prefer the Guardian on Google A cataclysm. A 9.0 earthquake. A five-alarm fire. A bitter rejection of Germany ’s joyous reunification three decades ago, and a threat to the democratic postwar order.