German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the white nationalists who rallied in Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday, calling the violence “absolutely repulsive,” and their actions “disgusting.”
“The scenes at the right-wing extremist march were absolutely repulsive — naked racism, anti-Semitism and hate in their most evil form were on display,” Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for the German chancellor, told reporters Monday, according to the Independent.
“Such images and chants are disgusting wherever they may be, and they are diametrically opposed to the political goals of the chancellor and the entire German government,” Seibert added.
Seibert told reporters Merkel stands in solidarity “with those who peacefully oppose such aggressive, far-right views.”
White nationalist groups gathered in Charlottesville on Saturday to protest the city’s decision to remove a statue of Robert E. Lee.
The racist groups participating in the rally clashed with counter-demonstrators, and a 20-year-old man drove a car into the crowd of people protesting the white nationalist event, killing one woman and injuring 19 others.
The Justice Department announced Sunday it is investigating whether others were part of the deadly attack.
President Trump issued a statement Saturday condemning “this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence, on many sides.”
But the president’s statement earned him criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike who said Trump should’ve condemned the specific white nationalist groups involved in the deadly rally.
