Far right looms as Germany commemorates Dresden bombing

Germany's president is leading commemorations Thursday marking the 75th anniversary of Dresden's bombing by allied forces at the end of World War II, an event that has become a test for the way the country handles its Nazi past.

Historians say up to 25,000 people perished during the three-day bombardment from February 13-15, 1945, by American and British planes.

That is comparable to the death toll in other large German cities.

But the man-made firestorm, vividly captured by American author Kurt Vonnegut in his book