Students strike across Germany in protest against military service

"That is why I am out on the streets today. That is why we are serious about striking until Compulsory military service is off the table. We will carry on."The questionnaire is mandatory for men and voluntary for women. All 18-year-old men will have to take a medical exam to assess their fitness for possible military service.The organisers of the protests, say the trigger came after some 18-year-olds in the northern German towns of Kiel and Flensburg, were sent official invitations for medical exams, even though they expressed no interest in joining the army on their registration forms.The group says over a hundred demonstrations are planned across Germany, including in Kiel, Hamburg, Berlin and Frankfurt.A spokesperson for the Defence Ministry told the BBC that under the law, the obligation to undergo a medical examination applies "to all men liable for military service who were born after 31 December 2007".This also applies to people who have stated that they have no interest in Compulsory military service. The spokesperson said that since July around 1,000 18-year-old men, who showed no interest in the army, have had the medical exam.During the Cold War, Germany, like many other European countries, had a large army. But it reduced its armed forces during the 1990s after the Fall of the Iron Curtain. Germany's former Chancellor, Angela Merkel, ended Compulsory military service in 2011.