Shops Looted as German Cost-of-Living Protests Turn Violent in Frankfurt and Three Other Cities
Largely peaceful youth-led protests over the cost of living across more than 30 German cities turned violent late Saturday in Frankfurt, Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg, with shops looted in Frankfurt and police using water cannon.
What began as a day of largely peaceful protest across Germany ended in looting and clashes on Saturday night. Rioters looted shops in central Frankfurt, Germany's financial hub, and disturbances erupted in Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg, where police deployed water cannon to disperse demonstrators, according to BBC reporting on the night's events.
The demonstrations were organised by the youth campaign group Gen Z regelt — 'Gen Z takes charge' — in more than 30 cities, demanding action on the rising cost of living, better funding for schools, an end to public spending cuts, and opposing a return to compulsory military service. Authorities in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin estimated up to 18,000 people took part in those cities, about half the number organisers had projected. In Frankfurt, police said protesters threw Molotov cocktails, stones and bottles at emergency workers, smashed the windows of several businesses, and broke into a gun shop; two firearms taken from the shop were later recovered, and a large section of the city's main shopping street was cordoned off, with several arrests made.
Hesse state Interior Minister Roman Poseck said about 100 clearly identified left-wing extremists had infiltrated the Frankfurt demonstration, a claim reported by officials as the political argument over the night began. By the early hours of Sunday, reporting from Germany said the unrest had eased. No death or serious-injury figure has been confirmed in the sources read this run, and this story reports none.
