Turn of the year - NRW starts the new year largely quietly
Tens of thousands of people in North Rhine-Westphalia celebrated the start of the new year last night under special security precautions, particularly in the major cities. According to initial police estimates, it remained largely calm. "No special incidents", said a spokeswoman for the NRW police control center at around 1.30 am, "we hope it stays that way".
After the terror warnings at Cologne Cathedral, special attention was paid to the largest city in the state. There too, however, everything was going normally for the time being. "A few firecrackers thrown, a few people taken into custody, nothing unusual," said a spokesperson. Most of the revellers had complied with the ban on firecrackers in Cologne city centre.
It had also been largely peaceful on the Domplatte and on the station forecourt. Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki had celebrated a well-attended New Year's Eve mass in the cathedral under massive police protection.
In Düsseldorf, the city center on the banks of the Rhine was initially very well filled around midnight. However, it quickly emptied out after around 20 minutes, said a spokesperson.
In Duisburg, the police reported attacks on police and firefighters, as reported by the police on the X platform, formerly Twitter. According to the police, two people were arrested.
On New Year's Eve 2022/23, firecrackers and rockets were also fired at police officers and emergency services in several NRW cities. State Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) subsequently spoke of a "new dimension of aggression". For this turn of the year, the minister had significantly increased the number of police officers to more than 6,600.
Following the experiences of the previous year, Cologne had set up a large firecracker ban zone in the entire city center on the left bank of the Rhine for the first time. In addition, all forms of fireworks, including sparklers, were once again banned around the cathedral. As in previous years, Düsseldorf only bans firecrackers in the old town, while Essen and Duisburg have dispensed with a local ban on firecrackers altogether. According to Duisburg, such a ban would merely shift the problems to other parts of the city.
In general, the setting off of pyrotechnics near churches, hospitals, nursing homes and children's homes is prohibited nationwide.
Police announcement on the danger warning for the cathedral (December 23) Police announcement on security measures at Cologne Cathedral (December 26) Police announcement on long-term detention for 30-year-old (December 26) Cathedral announcement Services in the cathedral Ministry of the Interior announcement
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Source: www.stern.de
