Police call for more cameras at Christmas markets
Hundreds of thousands of Germans are currently flocking to the Christmas markets. The carefree mood is mixed with discordant tones after plans for attacks become known. Police trade unionists are therefore calling for more cameras. In addition, officers are under enormous strain.
Following the recent arrests in connection with planned attacks on Christmas markets, the police union (GdP) is calling for the increased use of technical aids. The police could be relieved by video surveillance and facial recognition software, said GdP Federal Chairman Jochen Kopelke on ARD's "Morgenmagazin". "This frees up resources, and then we can do more patrols, citizen-friendly police work at Christmas markets, but also in city centers."
"Video surveillance at Christmas markets is a helpful tool that should be used intensively with the best technology," he previously told Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND). So far, this has only been the case in isolated cases because preventative video surveillance is often not possible due to data protection.
Kopelke said that the police are under great pressure in terms of personnel to protect the Christmas markets: "The presence is enforced by changing duty rosters, vacation closures and overtime." These extra shifts could not be maintained permanently. At this week's conference of interior ministers, the "stress situation, sickness rates and staffing levels" in the police force must also be discussed, said Kopelke.
3200 Christmas markets in Germany
The head of the German Police Union (DPolG), Rainer Wendt, also believes that the police are under considerable pressure. "On the one hand, police officers are working to protect Jewish facilities as a result of the Gaza war. And secondly, the federal police in the federal states cannot provide support at Christmas markets because they are tied up at the border," he told RND. Those who are or could become potential threats are also intercepted there.
Kopelke's appeal to visitors to Christmas markets is: "Don't be afraid, but (...) be alert." Citizens should report anything suspicious and "alert the police at an early stage". Frank Hakelberg, Managing Director of the German Showmen's Association, expressed similar sentiments. However, he asserted in the Rheinische Post newspaper on Saturday: "The 3200 Christmas markets in Germany are safe. People should be vigilant, but not worried."
Teenagers planned attack on Christmas market
Two teenagers aged 15 and 16 were recently arrested in North Rhine-Westphalia and Brandenburg for allegedly planning an attack on a Christmas market. In addition, a 20-year-old was taken into custody in Helmstedt in Lower Saxony. According to the State Office of Criminal Investigation, the police had received information that the suspect was planning a serious act of violence.
The two young people are in custody. Their alleged plans are reminiscent of the attack on the Christmas market at the Memorial Church in Berlin on December 19, 2016, in which 13 people died, one of them years later as a result.
Even before the latest arrests became known, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution had warned that the risk of possible terrorist attacks against Jewish and Israeli individuals and institutions as well as against "the West" had increased significantly against the backdrop of the Middle East conflict. However, the greatest danger does not come from supporters of Hamas or the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, but from terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda or the so-called Islamic State (IS).
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In response to the reported planned attacks on Christmas markets, the German Police Union (GdP) led by Jochen Kopelke, has urged for increased use of technical aids such as video surveillance and facial recognition software to alleviate the strain on officers. Rainer Wendt, head of the DPolG, also acknowledged the pressure on the police, highlighting the challenges of protecting Jewish facilities and providing support at Christmas markets due to border duties. In light of these threats, Wendt urged citizens to remain vigilant, while Frank Hakelberg, Managing Director of the German Showmen's Association, assured that Christmas markets are generally safe.
Source: www.ntv.de
