Faeser shows determination ahead of New Year's Eve
Riots, attacks on police officers, firefighters and paramedics - these images from last New Year's Eve should not be repeated. Interior Minister Faeser now explains in an interview how this is to be achieved. However, it is not only violence from the streets that is a threat - the risk of terrorist attacks is also high.
Before New Year's Eve, particularly in Berlin, Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser assured people of the "utmost vigilance" of the security authorities. "Our security authorities are of course keeping a close eye on the overall security situation at the turn of the year. We remain extremely vigilant," Faeser told the Tagesspiegel. "We have responded to the increased threat situation in recent weeks with a massive crackdown on the Islamist scene, also and especially in Berlin. We will continue to act in the same way."
Faeser announced a "crackdown" on attacks against police officers. "Our emergency services have experienced time and again that blind rage is carried out on their backs. The response to this must be a crackdown by the police, but also by the judiciary."
Not only in Berlin, but also in other cities, emergency and rescue services were massively attacked on New Year's Eve a year ago. In some cases, the police had to be deployed to protect firefighters from attacks while they were putting out fires. Similar riots are feared this year. The police and fire department are preparing for numerous deployments.
300 additional officers
The issue made waves and sparked a debate about youth violence, particularly in immigrant neighborhoods. The Berlin CDU demanded a list with the first names of the suspects. CDU leader Friedrich Merz spoke of "little pashas" and thus earned a lot of criticism, but also approval.
The Berlin police could count on the support of the federal government on New Year's Eve, Faeser said. "We are reinforcing our federal police forces at the train stations in Berlin with four task forces and other additional units. We will have around 500 federal police officers on duty there," she stated. "We are also supporting the Berlin police with a further 300 officers from the Federal Police."
On Thursday, Deutsche Umwelthilfe called for an immediate nationwide ban on New Year's Eve fireworks. "We need an end to black powder New Year's Eve fireworks - and we need it now," said Managing Director Jürgen Resch in the Rheinische Post newspaper. He referred to emergency services being attacked with rockets and injuries caused by fireworks. He also warned of panicked animals and disoriented wild birds.
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- In response to the violent attacks against emergency services during the previous New Year's Eve, including cops, firefighters, and paramedics in Berlin, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has announced a tougher stance on such incidents.
- With the turn of the year approaching, notably in Berlin, where violent incidents were prevalent last New Year's Eve, Nancy Faeser, the Federal Minister of the Interior, reiterated the need for utmost vigilance among security authorities.
- As Berlin prepares for New Year's Eve, concerns about potential riots have led to an increased deployment of police and federal officers, with Nancy Faeser confirming the addition of 300 officers from the Federal Police to support local law enforcement.
Source: www.ntv.de
