In Berlin in particular, there were concerns about riots in advance – and a political debate. On New Year’s Day, the fire department speaks of a “normal New Year’s Eve”. According to the police, there were apparently 54 injured.
After New Year’s Eve, emergency services and politicians in Berlin draw a positive conclusion. According to initial findings, there were 30 attacks on emergency services and fire brigade vehicles, as the Berlin fire brigade announced. Nobody was injured.
Police spokeswoman Anja Dierschke reported 54 injured police officers, 30 of them due to pyrotechnics. A total of 720 investigations were initiated into incidents throughout the city between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Because of the riots at the turn of the year a year ago, in which there were 69 attacks on firefighters and 15 helpers were injured, there had previously been a political debate about New Year’s Eve. Earlier in the evening, Berlin’s governing mayor Kai Wegner announced that the police would take tough action in the event of riots. A lot has been done for prevention, said the CDU politician. “And today is the night, if necessary, the night of repression.”
Faeser announced “tough action” in advance
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had also promised “extreme vigilance” in advance. The SPD politician announced a “tough crackdown” on attacks against police officers. “Our emergency services have had to experience again and again that blind anger is carried out on their backs. The answer to this must be tough action by the police, but also by the judiciary.”
They particularly focused on the Berlin district of Neukölln, where young people shot rockets at police officers and ambulances a year ago. The then governing mayor, Franziska Giffey, was “shocked” and spoke of a “breaking point”. The SPD politician called a “summit against youth violence”.
Significantly increased police presence
The Berlin police had previously announced a significantly stronger presence for the turn of the year from 2023 to 2024. The operational concept should be more focused on preventing acts of violence. “We are satisfied with our efforts, we successfully protected the fire department,” said a police spokesman around 3 a.m. on New Year’s morning.
The concept with no-fire zones and pre-defined hotspot areas worked, explained spokeswoman Dierschke in the morning. Through “consistent and low-threshold intervention” it was possible to avoid hot spots.
The significantly increased police presence in the city has led to more arrests, said Dierschke. According to the spokeswoman, there were more than 3,200 additional emergency services in addition to the approximately 1,000 police officers in patrol cars and guards. These are preliminary figures for New Year’s Eve use.
“Slightly compared to last year”
A spokesman for the Berlin fire department spoke of a “normal New Year’s Eve”. There were no major operations for the Berlin fire department. In total, the helpers went out on 1,598 missions from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. – 119 fewer cases than the year before. In everyday life there are 1,450 missions a day.
“On this first day of January, we can say that from the perspective of the Berlin fire department, the turn of the year went smoothly compared to the previous year,” explained state fire director Karsten Homrighausen.
Berlin Senator for the Interior satisfied
Berlin’s Interior Senator Iris Spranger was satisfied with the effort on New Year’s Eve. It has been shown that the months of preparation by the Berlin fire brigade, the Berlin police and her house in terms of prevention and consistent intervention have paid off, said the SPD politician on Twitter follower X.
At the same time, Spranger condemned the renewed violence against rescue workers: “But one thing is also clear: I condemn every single act of violence. And every injured colleague is one or one too many.”
Renewed violence against rescue workers
Any attack on emergency services is unacceptable, said state fire director Homrighausen. “We will not tolerate this and will file criminal charges in every single case.”
The Ver.di union is calling on employers to take better protective measures. They would have to fulfill their duty of care towards their employees much more. New Year’s Eve particularly clearly showed the violence that many public sector employees are exposed to.
“Violence against employees in the public sector must under no circumstances be accepted as an occupational risk,” emphasized Ver.di deputy chairwoman Christine Behle. “We call on employers and employers to document and report attacks against emergency services, to provide those affected with legal protection from criminal prosecution and to accept unenforceable claims for compensation for pain and suffering.”