Tino Chrupalla, the AfD party and parliamentary group leader, criticised fellow party member Markus Frohnmaier for omissions about the Middle‑East conflict.
On RTL and ntv, he pointed out that Frohnmaier’s comments could be understood, yet the situation should not be celebrated because of the attacks and the countless civilian casualties.
Frohnmaier, AfD’s foreign‑policy spokesman in the Bundestag, highlighted the “surgical precision and clear target orientation” of a recent U.S. military strike, a tone that diverged sharply from Chrupalla’s. He questioned the legitimacy of such “surgical warfare” citing an Iranian girls’ school hit that left 120 dead. While affirming that he does not celebrate rocket attacks-regardless of the target or perpetrator-he also clarified that he would not label Frohnmaier’s statements as a celebration.
Chrupalla stressed that the party stands for international law and the UN Charter, and that it has warned repeatedly about the unsettling developments in the region. He expressed an understanding of Israel’s motivations, but remained uncertain about the aims of both Israel and the United States. He argued that a regime change would not be achieved in this manner.
Regarding U.S. President Donald Trump, Chrupalla was critical. He said Trump was “launched as a peace president” but that he is likely to end up as a “war president”. Chrupalla added that Trump would need to explain this shift to his voters, especially if the attacks and the style of warfare fail to achieve their objectives.