Muslim group in Germany demands ban on anti-mosque party

Muslim group in Germany demands ban on anti-mosque party Erfurt, Germany - A far-right party which is organizing pickets outside German mosques should be banned, a leading Muslim group said Tuesday.

Aiman Mazyek, secretary of the Council Council of Muslims, one of four main Islamic groups in Germany, added it was intolerable that the National Democratic Party (NPD) was able to obtain state payouts.

He spoke in the central city of Erfurt where the Thuringia state

chapter of the far-right group had earlier announced the anti-mosque parades, triggering plans by opponents for counter-demonstrations.

Mazyek spoke just days after a Muslim woman was murdered in court by a right-winger as she was seeking justice against him for insulting her for wearing a head-scarf.

Germany's main parties have hesitated to seek a legal ban on the NPD after a 2003 bid was defeated in court. Under a law granting state aid to all parties in proportion to the votes they receive, the NPD has obtained government subsidies.

Mazyek said the NPD was trying to whip up anti-Muslim feeling. He called the Dresden court murder "clearly an anti-Muslim crime."(dpa)