2024 - Violence on New Year's Eve - after riots in Germany: demands on politicians

Two days after violent riots broke out in the German capital with attacks on law enforcement and rescue workers, German politicians reacted. Franziska Giffey, the governing mayor of Berlin, was appalled by the riots.

In several German cities, police and rescue workers were hindered in their work on New Year’s Eve and fired on with firecrackers and rockets. The police and fire brigade in Berlin experienced a particularly large number of brutal attacks. Unknown people had deliberately lured firefighters into ambushes. 15 firefighters and 18 police officers were injured.

“This is completely incomprehensible, incomprehensible and absolutely to be condemned,” she said. “We will discuss the consequences of this in the Berlin Senate, and the state government will position itself on this.”

The rule of law must not allow people celebrating peacefully in our cities and emergency services doing their duty to be exposed to such attacks.

The federal government also condemned the attacks. “The Federal Government, and of course the Chancellor, condemns these, in some cases massive, attacks on police and fire brigade operations, volunteer helpers and journalists on New Year’s Eve, in the strongest possible terms,” said deputy government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann in Berlin.

Legend:

Stefan Reinhart is the head of the SRF newsroom and is currently deputizing for Germany correspondent Alexandra Gubser in Berlin.

SRF / Oscar Alessio

It happens again and again that New Year’s Eve celebrations in Berlin degenerate into riots: the fact that firefighters and paramedics are attacked, in dozens of cases, is a new dimension.

The list of political demands is therefore correspondingly long the day after. On the one hand, there is a Germany-wide, general ban on firecrackers, on the other hand, juvenile offenders should be punished more severely and consistently.

The pressure on politicians to act quickly is growing. All the more so as government elections are due in Berlin in mid-February.

The government has great confidence in the investigative authorities of the countries that the perpetrators would be consistently identified. She added: “The rule of law must not allow people who celebrate peacefully in our cities and emergency services who are on duty to be exposed to such attacks.”