Dire economic news continues to roll in as Germany faces deepening deindustrialization and an economic downturn under Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Reports today say Volkswagen’s management board is proposing to wind down production at four major German plants and shift much of that work abroad.

Just days before, Merz warned that investors would shun an AfD-governed federal state in the future.

“I cannot imagine international investors showing up for a groundbreaking ceremony with an AfD state premier to establish new plants or set up new businesses in Saxony-Anhalt,” said Merz during an ARD summer interview on Aug. 30.

He added that if a right-wing populist party won an absolute majority in the coming election, international investors would think twice about whether to invest in Saxony-Anhalt.

However, VW’s management board has now recommended closing four German production sites. The AfD has seized on the reports.

“In four VW plants, the group board is turning off the lights. The energy transition and electric planned economy are pulling the plug on the German automotive industry. With an AfD government, the economic turnaround will return to reason,” wrote AfD co-chair Alice Weidel.

Gleich in vier VW-Werken lässt der Konzernvorstand die Lichter ausgehen. Energiewende und Elektro-Planwirtschaft ziehen der deutschen Autoindustrie den Stecker. Mit einer AfD-Regierung kommt die Wirtschaftswende zurück zur Vernunft.https://t.co/6BEVQlIf3y

— Alice Weidel (@Alice_Weidel) September 2, 2026

The plan was unanimously adopted by the VW management board and will be presented to the Supervisory Board on Sept. 3. While not an immediate shutdown, it would end production in the early 2030s in Emden, Zwickau, Hanover, and Neckarsulm, with production transferred to Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic.

Germany’s anemic growth is almost entirely debt-fueled and focused on public sector and defense. Its once world-class industrial base is meanwhile rapidly eroding, with Normura reporting that investors are increasingly receptive to right-wing victories, as ZeroHedge reported.

VW could cut up to 30,000 employees in Germany

The AfD is using Merz’s economic record to argue that investors would welcome an AfD victory in the state.

AfD candidate Ulrich Siegmund told Welt TV that “exactly the opposite” would happen and that an AfD government would instead encourage firms to launch projects in Saxony-Anhalt.

Conservative-governed states abroad would see “a competitive advantage if we finally have long-term planning security again, if we have no climate targets, no quota targets,” argued Siegmund.

“[Merz’s] current economic policy speaks for itself here. We are currently experiencing deindustrialization in this country. Businesses are closing, businesses are leaving this country. That means reality speaks a clear language here,” he said.

Weidel also attacked Merz after his warning of “significant damage.”

“No German Chancellor has advanced the economic misery and deindustrialization of our country as much as Friedrich Merz,” she said. “His arrogant threats towards the responsible voters in Saxony-Anhalt show the political elite in Berlin is trembling.”

Zerohedge further discussed Normura’s take on the issue, which may be generally supportive of the AfD’s stance.

Andrzej Szczepaniak, senior European economist and executive director at Nomura, wrote “the seeds of political change” adding that “politics in Europe is lurching towards more populism.”

‘Insolvency tsunami’ – AfD’s Weidel slams government as company bankruptcies continue their march higher

Szczepaniak said: “Five years ago, financial markets would not have seemed so at ease with such a prospect. But then again, these populist right-wing political parties were previously not as fiscally prudent as they are perceived to be today. Indeed, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni is the standard-bearer for financial markets of how a populist right-wing political party can govern: fiscally prudent enough to show investors that the party can govern responsibly while focusing heavily on social issues, including immigration and culture wars, to keep grassroots supporters happy.”

“Financial markets are much more concerned about populist left-wing parties being elected due to their desire to increase spending, often paid for through higher borrowing or higher taxes, which are likely to shut the engine off of already stuttering economies.”

VW’s leaders point to Germany’s high costs

While VW plans for plant closures have not been finalized, they are a sign of general industrial trends across Germany.

German corporate bankruptcies hit 20-year high in the first quarter of 2026, while high energy prices could only add to the despair

VW CEO Oliver Blume, at works council meetings in Emden, said that labor costs at Emden are more than twice those at comparable European plants. He noted that factory costs at other group plants are “clearly cheaper.”

“That is not an accusation, it is the reality we have to be measured against,” he said.

He added that cost cutting “is not enough to stay competitive long-term in a world of such massive change.”

On Aug. 31, CFO Arno Antlitz in Hanover said, according to Reuters, that: “We build good cars but earn too little because our costs are too high.”

‘Almost every German city is now on the verge of bankruptcy’

“Because of the large cost differences versus other European plants, we currently have no economically viable follow-on production for four German sites once current products run out in the early 2030s,” he warned.

Companies across Germany have either cut production or closed plants entirely, with VW now one of the most high-profile corporate giants eyeing taking the same action.

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The Alternative for Germany has reached a record high of 43 percent in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt for the first time in an Insa poll, which was commissioned by Nius newspaper.

The same poll found that the Christian Democrats (CDU) would receive 22 percent, the Left Party 12 percent, and the Social Democrats (SPD) 7 percent. The Green Party would receive 5 percent, allowing it to cross the threshold to enter parliament.

Will an AfD victory turn into defeat?

Other parties would not have enough votes to enter, including the BSW at 4 percent and the FDP at 3 percent.

While the polling results put the AfD in first place by a wide margin, it also would not be enough for the AfD to win a clear majority in the state parliament.

While 43 percent of voters said they would back the AfD, another 5 percent of voters said they could imagine voting for the party.

If the Greens come under the 5 percent mark, the AfD may still have a chance to secure an absolute majority even with only 43 percent of the vote.

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A suspected underworld revenge attack linked to fugitive drug trafficker Jos Leijdekkers, known as “Bolle Jos,” left a security guard dead and two police officers wounded in the quiet Dutch village of Overasselt in the early hours of Sept. 1, 2026. Surveillance cameras captured vans full of masked men carrying assault rifles during the attack, which is raising fears that Netherlands is devolving into a narco-state.

JUST IN: Shocking footage shows 1 security guard murdered and 2 police officers wounded in the Netherlands.

Dozens of armed drug gang members opened fire in the small Dutch town of Overasselt.

Footage shows multiple vans filled with masked men armed with assault rifles.… pic.twitter.com/ShudqYyHFg

— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) September 2, 2026

Around 4:00 a.m., two vans pulled up and a large group approached a farmhouse previously tied to a drug lab. The surveillance footage shows the group approaching a parked car with its interior light on. Five shots were then fired, according to the Dutch police report on the incident.

A 51-year-old man from nearby Wijchen, hired as a security guard after an earlier attack on the property, was murdered. Neighbors reported hearing dozens of shots, with one neighbor telling Dutch media he heard 37 shots before police arrived.

The first officers responding to a report of a suspicious situation came under immediate fire. Colleagues dragged the wounded officers to safety while still being shot at. One officer initially suffered life-threatening injuries; both were later reported out of danger.

Police launched a nationwide manhunt involving helicopters, dogs, special intervention units, and roadblocks on the A73 and A76. Warning shots were fired during searches of cornfields, gardens, and other sites. The operation led to the arrest of 34 suspects at multiple locations, including a cornfield near the scene, Nijmegen train station, and highways in Limburg.

The suspects included Dutch, Belgian, French, and Algerian nationals. Weapons, vehicles, and data carriers were seized. A large-scale investigation team (TGO) has now been formed, with all detainees remaining in custody.

The incredible violence has sparked reactions all the way from local police officials to the country’s justice minister.

Deputy Police Chief of the East Netherlands unit Jolanda Aalbers described the night as “indescribable.”

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“For colleagues this is a truly intense incident. Colleagues were wounded and they were brought to safety by other colleagues at risk to their own lives. It was a real act of heroism. We are grateful that the wounded colleagues are out of life-threatening condition.”

Justice Minister David van Weel condemned “horrible violence” and said “we do not tolerate this,” according to Dutch news outlet NOS.

He also described the scale of the violence as “unprecedented” for the Netherlands.

“The fact that you have hordes of dozens of young people walking through the streets of a village and immediately opening fire on the police is unprecedented and new,” he said. He spoke of a suspected criminal settling of accounts involving international drug cartels that operate across borders.

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Monique Vinkesteijn called it a “long-running conflict.”

She said that suspects face charges including murder or manslaughter, attempted murder, conspiracy, and preparation of a kidnapping. She described ten different crime scenes, underlining the sprawling and complex nature of the crime. She said investigators were working to link each suspect to specific locations.

Mayor Joerie Minses of Heumen municipality, which includes Overasselt, called the violence “un-Dutch,” “completely unacceptable,” and something that “goes beyond all bounds.”

Dutch princess kidnapping threat shows not even royalty is safe in multicultural Europe

“What happened last night does not fit Overasselt,” he stated.

He now says he may want to close the farmhouse entirely, which has a documented history of trouble.

In 2019, a professional drug lab was found in shipping containers near the farmhouse after a fire. In 2024, armed men were found at the gate of the house.

In July 2025, an attacker fired at least 25 rounds from an AK-47-style rifle at the house, resulting in the conviction of a 21-year-old from Amsterdam. Residents then hired private security.

What sparked the latest attack?

There are now questions about what prompted such a large-scale attack from the drug gangs. Dutch media, citing police sources, linked the attack to a dispute over an 812-kilogram cocaine shipment seized on Aug. 29 at the French-Spanish border. The drugs were in a Dutch-registered truck traveling from Africa via Portugal.

The masked gang members may have been seeking a missing portion of the load or confronting an intermediary connected to Leijdekkers’ network. Leijdekkers, one of the Netherlands’ most-wanted fugitives, has been convicted in both the Netherlands and Belgium, including a 14-year sentence in the Belgian Costa case involving Antwerp port cocaine trafficking. He faces decades in prison for other crimes as well. He is believed to be in West Africa. Police have not officially confirmed the Leijdekkers link.

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Two people were slightly injured when an unknown object exploded near Augsburg Central Station in southern Germany, according to German police. A large operation by law enforcement is underway at the scene, and the cause of the explosion is not yet known. The incident comes just a day after Germany blamed Russia for an attempted airport drone attack in Leipzig.

The explosion occurred on Wednesday morning, Sept. 2, in the passage of a building near the station. According to police, two people suffered minor injuries. The detonation also damaged windows in nearby buildings.

The police have secured the scene and are conducting activities to determine what object exploded and under what circumstances the explosion occurred.

Explosives experts from the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office (LKA) are also working on site. At this stage, authorities have not provided more information.

Due to the emergency services’ action, there are disruptions to road traffic and public transport in the area of the station. The station building and platform 1 have been closed, while rail traffic on the remaining platforms continues. The police appeal to residents and travelers to avoid the station area and follow the officers’ instructions.

There is currently no official information that the explosion was the result of an attack or was terrorist-related. Police are still investigating the causes of the incident.

Augsburg is a regional transport hub located approximately 55 kilometers northwest of Munich.

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A French police officer who leads an association for LGBT+ staff in France’s Interior and Justice ministries was beaten outside a bar in the Marais in the early hours of Aug. 29 and left with serious head and facial injuries, prosecutors said. The suspect is reportedly Taha W., a 20-year-old from the multicultural department Seine-Saint-Denis, according to French journalist Amaury Brelet.

Pierre Picavet, president of the FLAG! association, was leaving a bar in the Marais, which has long been a center of Paris’s gay nightlife, at around 4 a.m. when a man confronted him, according to his later account and the Paris prosecutor’s office. The attacker shouted homophobic slurs and threatened to kill him. Picavet said he produced his police identity card more than once and told the man to stop. The assault continued.

“At first I thought it was a joke, then he said, ‘I’m going to kill you, you dirty faggot,’” Picavet told RMC.

“That startled me. I stepped back. He repeated ‘I’m going to kill you’ with a very thick whiskey bottle in his hand,” he added.

Muslim students attack LGBTQ sensitivity training in Belgium, spit on LGBT flag, chant ‘Allah Akbar’

Picavet said he tried to dodge blows and punched the man in the mouth. The attacker then struck him in the head with the bottle.

“It bled tremendously. I staggered. I didn’t lose consciousness right away. He went past me, I grabbed him, but he pinned me. The only way I could get free was to bite him. I bit him on the cheek. He threw me to the ground, I hit my head and I passed out,” said the police officer.

Firefighters were already treating him when police arrived. Prosecutors said he suffered internal bleeding, a skull injury described as an open wound, multiple facial fractures and a black eye. He was later given 40 days of total work incapacity.

A witness identified the attacker, who was arrested. The Paris prosecutor’s office opened an investigation for violence causing more than eight days of incapacity, committed because of the victim’s sexual orientation. An investigating judge was later appointed. The case also includes a theft count.

Prosecutors said the suspect, a man born in 2006 with no prior criminal record, was visibly drunk. They cited three aggravating circumstances: the homophobic motive, use of a weapon, and intoxication. He was charged with aggravated violence and released under judicial supervision.

Migrant teenagers jailed in Denmark for brutal ambush attacks on gay men in Odense

In his complaint, Picavet said the man called him a “dirty faggot” several times. Showing his police card “did not deter the suspect from attacking him,” the prosecutor’s office said.

The empty bottle used in the attack was recovered and placed under seal.

While speaking with the media afterwards, Picavet said: “You have to know that in the neighborhood, there are more and more people coming to mug LGBT people, or beat them, or offer them narcotics… I really hope that it’s isolated and that people will manage to open their minds and not be like that anymore.”

He said that he has been frequenting the neighborhood for 30 years, but stated “yesterday, I went back with fear in my stomach. I went back with fear in my stomach, but I went back.”

Picavet also noted that since Europe’s migration crisis truly took off in 2016, the threat to LGBT people has soared.

“The number of homophobic crimes and offenses has tripled since 2016. Tripled! 4,900 homophobic assaults last year!” he stated.

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The association Stop Homophobie called the attack a homophobic assault and published photographs of Picavet’s injuries that he sent from hospital. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire condemned what he described as an “odious homophobic attack” in the heart of the capital and offered support to the FLAG! president.

Speaking on France Inter after the assault, Picavet said he was “particularly shocked,” but added that the episode showed “there is still work to do.” He said: “When I get better, when I have healed my wounds, I will continue the fight.”

FLAG! represents LGBT+ personnel in the Interior and Justice ministries and campaigns against anti-LGBT discrimination and violence.

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