On September 20, 2008, thousands of people in France and Germany took to the streets calling for soldiers deployed in Afghanistan to be brought home. More than 5,000 people took to the streets in the German cities of Berlin and Stuttgart to protest against the decision to prolong the deployment of German troops in Afghanistan. According to police estimates, over 3,300 people in Berlin, and over 2,000 people in Stuttgart took part in the rallies, while event organizers put the total figure at 7,000 people.