German MEP seriously injured after being attacked while campaigning

Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (Photo by Marten Ronneburg/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Sarah Marsh and Andreas Rinke

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Saturday vowed to fight a surge in violence against politicians after a German member of the European Parliament had to be taken to hospital after being attacked while campaigning for re-election.

Matthias Ecke, 41, a member of Faeser's Social Democrats (SPD), was hit and kicked by a group of four people while putting up posters in Dresden, capital of the eastern state of Saxony, police said. An SPD source said his injuries would require an operation.