Ex-Ukip leader Nigel Farage will speak at a far-right event in Germany tonight alongside Beatrix von Storch.
The event is being held by the German political party Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) ahead of the country’s elections which will take place on 24 September.
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Who is Beatrix von Storch and what is her connection to Nigel Farage?
Who is Beatrix von Storch?
Von Storch is one of AfD’s members of the European Parliament (MEP), having been elected to office in 2014.
She is part of the Europe for Freedom and Democracy group in parliament. This is where her connection to Farage comes in as he is the parliamentary leader of the group.
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By GlobalDataLast year, von Storch was at the centre of a scandal in the parliament after reportedly saying that police should be allowed to use weapons against refugees, namely women and children, who enter Germany illegally.
She later tried to play down the remarks, saying that “the use of firearms against children is not permitted,” however, “women are a different matter”.
As a result, she is a leading figure of the populist anti-immigrant movement in the country.
As well, von Storch has a controversial past.
Her grandfather was Lutz von Krosigk, Adolf Hitler’s finance minister. In his role as a senior minister in the Third Reich, his ministry was involved in the persecution of Jewish people across Germany and Europe, including stealing their property and laundering money.
In addition, von Storch is also part royalty. Her official title is Duchess of Oldenburg, part of the old House of Oldenburg, which comes from the city of the same name in the state of Lower Saxony.
She belongs to the same family as the royal houses of Denmark and Norway and has connections to the UK’s royal family, through the deposed royal house of Greece.
This is where the Duke of Edinburgh, the Queen’s husband, hails from.
What is the event tonight?
Tonight, Farage will be discussing “developments in the European Union, Brexit, direct democracy” and “how to make the impossible possible.” It will take place in Berlin, at an old fortress named the Spandau Citadel.
As part of its election campaign, AfD has been calling for a referendum on Germany’s membership of the EU as well as a separate referendum on leaving the Eurozone.
The party is currently polling at between eight and 11 percent.
