Germany’s Gen Z protests turn violent as riots, looting erupt in major cities
Violence erupted in several German cities on Saturday as Gen Zs took to the streets to protest a myriad of issues, including rising living costs and underfunding of schools. The protests, which were largely peaceful by day, assumed a violent dimension at night, with police forced to fire water cannons and pepper spray in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne and Leipzig.
Violence erupted in several German cities on Saturday as Gen Zs took to the streets to protest a myriad of issues, including rising living costs and underfunding of schools. The violent demonstrations in Germany come in the wake of similar youth-led mass protests in France, where more than 320,000 people took part in a third consecutive weekend of protests.
The French protests, which were over high cost of living and underfunding of education, resulted in large-scale looting and destruction of properties. The protests in Germany, organised by Gen Z regelt, loosely translated as “Gen Zs got this’’, took place in more than 30 cities, with thousands taking part. The young Germans are also opposing public spending cuts and the potential return of compulsory military service.
The protests, which were largely peaceful by day, assumed a violent dimension at night, with police forced to fire water cannons and pepper spray in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne and Leipzig. Masked rioters smashed shop windows and looted stores in Frankfurt, hurling Molotov cocktails, fireworks and stones at police. Several police officers were injured in a clash with a group of protesters in Frankfurt.
“We assume there were about 100 attackers motivated by extreme leftist ideology,” Roman Poseck, the state interior minister, said. Frankfurt police reportedly took around 30 people into custody, following the violent protests. In Hamburg, protesters fired pyrotechnics at police and set barricades on fire, with the officers responding with water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowds.
Rioters also smashed shop windows and set rubbish bins on fire. Lina Friedrich, spokesperson for Gen Z regelt, said the demonstrations were “to fight for peace and freedom, rather than for war and coercion.” “What matters most to us is better support for the health and education systems. We are against compulsory military service, and we are in favour of a fairer distribution of the burden,” Friedrich said.
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