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BERLIN (AP) — A court has rejected a lawsuit against the mayor of Berlin by the far-right Alternative for Germany party, which accused him of unlawful, one-sided support of a protest against it.
In May, 25,000 people protested in Berlin against a 5,000-person rally by the party, also known as AfD. Center-left Mayor Michael Mueller tweeted his support for the counter-protest, calling it an "impressive signal for democracy and freedom, against racism."
On Wednesday, Berlin's state constitutional court rejected an AfD lawsuit claiming that Mueller had violated the neutrality required by his job. The court said he didn't specifically mention or criticize AfD in his tweet.
The mayor responded by pinning the disputed tweet to the top of his Twitter timeline and saying the verdict helps strengthen "democratic decision-building on social media."
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