LONDON — An "anti-Islamisation" group which has staged rallies across Germany and in Austria has said it's planning to hold a march in Newcastle on Feb. 28.

Pegida, which is also known as Patriotic Europeans Against Islamisation of the West, held a series of events in Germany towards the end of last year.

17,000 people turned up to one gathering in Dresden on Dec. 23rd and the group has since drawn a small crowd in Austria.

Counter-demonstrations have also been staged, and Angela Merkel attended a tolerance rally in January.

Counter-demonstrators protest against the anti-Islamic Pegida (Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West) movement.

Just over 200 people have said they plan to attend the Newcastle event on the group's Facebook page.

Pegida organisers said they chose Newcastle because "it's a very British city. There are not as many left-wingers and Muslims as in London and Birmingham," according to reports.

"We don't have any problem with counter-demonstrations. We're not going to fight anybody and I hope they respect us."

Chi Onwurah, Labour MP for Newcastle Central told the Guardian she didn't think Pegida would be as successful in Newcastle as they have been in Germany.

“Pegida, like EDL [English Defence League] and all those who try to peddle a message of hatred, will find they have no place in Newcastle,” she said.

Numerous Pegida chapters have sprung up on Facebook across Europe since the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. Many have thousands of likes, which would suggest a strong support base.

However, according to analysis by the BBC, many of these likes are coming from within Germany.