German internal security services have designated the AfD party as a far-right extremist organization, giving authorities greater powers to monitor the party just months after it came second in national elections, AFP reports.

The far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has been under investigation by the BfV internal security agency for several years, and several local party structures have already been classified as far-right extremist.

The investigative agency said it had decided to give this assessment to the entire party because there were numerous cases in which the AfD had attempted to "undermine the free, democratic order" in Germany.

The party "aims to exclude certain groups of the population from equal participation in society," the BfV said in a statement.

Specifically, the AfD does not consider German citizens with a migrant background from countries with large Muslim populations to be "equal members of the German people," the agency added.

"This is evident from the large number of ongoing xenophobic, anti-minority, Islamophobic, and anti-Muslim statements by leading party officials," the statement said.

The classification gives intelligence services additional powers to monitor the AfD, reducing barriers to measures such as wiretapping and the use of undercover agents.

The party has gained popularity in recent years, capitalizing on growing concerns about migration at a time when Europe's largest economy is mired in recession.

It came second in February's general election, winning over 20% of the vote, behind Friedrich Merz's centrist CDU/CSU, which is set to take over as coalition leader next week. |BGNES