This story began with a mysterious gun in an airport bathroom and led to a German military officer facing trial on terrorism charges. It’s a story about national identity and reckoning, mirroring the story of Germany itself. And years later, it’s still unfolding — raising a question that democracies across the world are waking up to: What happens when the threat is coming from within? See all episodes of Day X at nytimes.com/dayx
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episode 5: Day X, Part 5: Defensive Democracy
In this episode, we get answers on just how bad the problem of far-right infiltration in the German military and police really is — and how Germany is trying to address it.
We learn about Germany's "defensive democracy," which was designed after World War II to protect the country against threats from the inside. One of those threats, according to some German officials, is the Alternative for Germany, widely known by its German initials AfD. We meet intelligence officials who have put parts of the party under formal surveillance.