Several proceedings initiated
“Reich citizens” also made Green Ash Wednesday explode
February 21, 2024, 8:43 p.m
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Due to violent protests, the Greens canceled their rally in Biberach, Baden-Württemberg. The processing is currently taking place. The responsible interior minister now says that there were also “Reich citizens” and “lateral thinkers” among the demonstrators – and expressed strong criticism.
According to the state government in Stuttgart, members of the “Reichsburger” and “lateral thinkers” scenes were among the demonstrators during the violent protests against a political Ash Wednesday event organized by the Greens in Biberach, Baden-Württemberg. Interior Minister Thomas Strobl said this at a meeting of the Interior Committee of the Baden-Württemberg state parliament. There are now more than a dozen investigations underway.
According to the minister, eight of the cases are based on physical attacks on police officers and one on suspicion of a serious breach of the peace. Investigations were carried out three times for damage to property and twice for violations of the Explosives Act. There are also ongoing investigations into, among other things, coercion, prisoner release, dangerous bodily harm and various traffic and regulatory offenses.
At the committee meeting in Stuttgart, Strobl again sharply criticized the protests on Wednesday last week. “Anyone who prevents the party from exercising its basic rights and attacks police officers crosses a red line and must answer for themselves,” he said. Criticism of Strobl, however, came from the opposition. The SPD MP Sascha Binder explained that Strobl, as the responsible interior minister, bore political responsibility for the fact that a party was unable to hold a meeting.
Protesters behaved aggressively
The Greens canceled their political Ash Wednesday rally in Biberach, Baden-Württemberg, due to violent protests from farmers in front of the event hall. They justified this with security concerns. According to police reports, some of the demonstrators behaved aggressively and attacked emergency services. They use batons and pepper spray. There were also stones thrown at officers, which damaged police cars. A suspect was temporarily arrested after an attack.
The events caused consternation across party lines and calls for moderation in the political debate. Among other things, North Rhine-Westphalia’s Prime Minister Henrik Wüst spoke of the fact that such aggressive and intimidating forms of protest were “crossing borders”.