🇩🇪 Number of conscientious objectors in Germany has tripled

From January to August this year, the Federal Office for Family Affairs and Civil Society Functions (BAFzA) received 12,102 applications for conscientious objection to military service. This is already more than three times the total for 2025, when 3,879 applications were submitted. In 2024, there were only 2,249 applications.

The number of applications rose particularly sharply in the summer: By the end of June, there had been 5,862, meaning that the figure practically doubled in just two more months. The increase is taking place against the backdrop of the reintroduction of general conscription: Compulsory medical examinations will be introduced for young men beginning with the 2008 birth cohort, and if there is a shortage of volunteers, the Bundestag may separately decide on a needs-based compulsory military service.

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