Founder of far right Pegida group banned from leading rallies

The founder of the German far-right Pegida movement Lutz Bachmann has been banned from leading the group's weekly rallies.

It comes after Bachmann led an unauthorised Pegida rally in Dresden on 2 October, when the eastern German city hosted Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Joachim Gauck for German Unity Day celebrations.

Merkel and Gauck were reportedly jeered by Pegida supporters during the event.

Bachmann and his deputy leader, Siegfried Däbritz, have been banned from leading Pegida rallies until 2021, German press agency DPA reported. On his Facebook page, Bachmann vowed to continue attending the group's rallies.

'Pegida' stands for Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, and members oppose the entry to Germany of immigrants from Muslim countries.

At the height of the refugee crisis, tens of thousands of people attended Pegida rallies in Dresden, and linked groups emerged in other cities. A recent two year anniversary rally though drew less than half of the numbers attending a year ago.

Bachmann himself was found guilty of inciting hatred in May, after calling refugees "scum" and "cattle" on his Facebook page.

Previously, he was forced to temporarily step aside as Pegida leader, after pictures emerged of him posing as Adolf Hitler.