BBC News:
Politicians and celebrities in Germany have joined a media campaign against Pegida, a group protesting against what it sees as the “Islamisation” of Europe.
Former Chancellor Helmut Schmidt and retired footballer Oliver Bierhoff are among 80 figures to back a petition in German newspaper Bild.
It comes after rival rallies took place across the country.
Some 18,000 people attended one anti-immigration rally in Dresden on Monday.
There have been weekly protests by the Patriotic Europeans against the Islamisation of the West (Pegida) since October.
Categories: Anti-Islam Attitude, Anti-Islam Campaign, Europe and Australia, Germany, ISLAMOPHOBIA