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PalmerFrohnmaier Debate Proceeds in Tübingen After Disruptions and Mass Protests

Palmer later called the event evidence that engaging the AfD need not be a losing strategy.

Overview

  • Police removed about 30 disruptive attendees after sirens, chants and whistles halted the start, issued place bans and the debate then continued under tight moderation.
  • Outside the hall, police counted between more than 1,000 and up to roughly 2,000 protesters; demonstrations were largely peaceful with brief scuffles reported and no injuries.
  • The tightly structured forum covered six topic blocks with strict timekeeping, was moderated by rhetoric professor Joachim Knape and was livestreamed without audience cutaways.
  • Attendance filled a hall of several hundred seats with roughly 100 reserved for AfD members, and entry involved ID checks plus bans on weapons, pyrotechnics and noise devices.
  • The event was arranged as a substitute for a planned AfD street rally after merchants warned of economic harm, and Palmer later said there was no clear winner while noting he missed chances to press Frohnmaier on evasions.