While the corona numbers are falling continuously, the number of people on the streets is increasing. And the police have a lot more to do with that. There were ugly scenes in several cities.
Stuttgart / Hamburg (dpa) – After months of the corona lockdown, people are pushing outside. This is increasingly causing problems – and in some cases it is also dangerous for the police.
In several cities in Germany, celebrations took place on the last weekend in May, including Stuttgart, Regensburg, Hamburg and Munich.
Late on Saturday evening in downtown Stuttgart, several police officers were injured and young rioters were provisionally arrested in clashes between young people and the police. The pictures brought back memories of the so-called Stuttgart night of riot in June 2020. At that time, dozens of people, especially young men, rioted in the city of Stuttgart.
Since last Thursday, Stuttgart residents no longer have to be home at 10:00 p.m. for the first time in weeks. However, the alcohol ban in many places in the Baden-Württemberg city continues to exist. After the large-scale operation, the city and the police are examining a ban on staying in the popular areas in the city.
In Hamburg, the Second Mayoress Katharina Fegebank (Greens) called the celebrations of thousands in the Schanzenviertel “totally out of place”. The virus was not out of the world, “and the Ballermann is currently more civilized than on the shoulder blade,” she said. After an illegal rave party, officials cleared the Schanzenviertel on Sunday night. At the peak, around 4500 people celebrated and drank there, the police said.
In Weiden in the Upper Palatinate, celebrants left a “swath of devastation”, as the police said. Around 60 young people rioted. Youngsters damaged parked cars, a billboard and a barrier on Saturday night.
In Regensburg, the police broke up a gathering at the Stone Bridge. Many then moved on towards the city center. There were also around 250 people there at times. The mood was sometimes very aggressive, it said. When the police wanted to break up the crowd, bottles are said to have flown again towards the officials.
In Munich there was a tumult on Odeonsplatz on Saturday night after a bottle was thrown on a patrol car. According to the police, some bystanders then “showed aggressive behavior”. Several “males” were arrested. A police spokeswoman emphasized that the operation is not comparable to the operation in the English Garden almost three weeks ago, in which 19 officers were slightly injured when throwing bottles.
In Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia’s Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) got an idea of the implementation of the alcohol and lingering ban in the old town on Sunday. The police control center spoke of a largely calm situation. However, the mood had become more aggressive early on Sunday morning. The restrictions are a reaction to excessive violations of the Corona requirements on the days of Pentecost. Both on Friday and Saturday evening, barriers on the “Kö” (Königsallee) were partially pushed away or bypassed in order to still get onto the boulevard. “We have no understanding for the audacity of some road users who think they have to use the Kö as their stage and will keep a close eye on this in the future,” said a police spokesman.
In Hanover, too, so-called car posers met with highly motorized cars and the police showed their presence at the Maschsee. Around 100 threats were made, 40 cars were checked and 19 violations of the Corona rules were found, the police said on Sunday. In the Linden-Nord district, where young people meet on the weekends, there were 300 addresses of threats, 100 expulsions and around 40 proceedings due to corona violations.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210530-99-797085 / 3
