A pro-Palestinian demonstration in Berlin has become significantly larger than the organizers expected. According to police, 6,000 people gathered instead of 2,000. According to reporters, masked people also take part.
A pro-Palestinian demonstration is currently taking place in Berlin-Mitte under strict conditions.
According to the police, around 6,000 people gathered at the starting point of the demonstration at the Neptune Fountain in front of the Red Town Hall. The demonstration started moving around 3 p.m. According to an rbb reporter, there was a mixed picture among the participants: there were families with children, but also some masked people. Participants chanted, among other things, “Freedom for Palestine.” The police checked banners and a few people were taken into custody.
Police issue a broad catalog of requirements for pro-Palestinian demonstrations
A pro-Palestinian demonstration is scheduled to take place in Berlin-Mitte on Saturday under strict conditions. It could be the largest gathering of its kind. The police have taken precautions. By Georg-Stefan Russewmore
Families and masked people among participants
The police expect more than 10,000 demonstrators. According to the police, the organizers spoke of around 2,000 expected participants.
Several pro-Palestinian groups nationwide have called for the protest march. “Many from the left-wing political spectrum who have already called for the ‘Revolutionary May 1st Demo’ this year also mobilized,” according to the police, according to dpa. There was massive mobilization nationwide for the protest, said GdP spokesman Benjamin Jendro on Saturday on rbb24 Inforadio. One must therefore assume a five-digit number of participants.
The demo should start at 2 p.m. at the Neptune Fountain in front of the Red Town Hall and leads across Alexanderplatz, past the Humboldt Forum via Unter den Linden, Friedrichstrasse and Leipziger Strasse to Potsdamer Platz.
According to the police, any statements that are anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and that glorify violence or terror are prohibited.
Operations manager Stephan Katte emphasized in advance that anyone who denies Israel’s right to exist is committing a crime that will be punished immediately. “A repeated commission of such crimes can lead to the dissolution of a meeting very early on,” Katte told the dpa news agency.
Police receive no support from other countries
According to authorities, around 1,400 police officers will be out and about throughout the day on operations related to the Middle East conflict. Contrary to what the police union demanded, there is no support from other federal states.
Jendro once again criticized the enormous strain on the emergency services. He called for more federal support. You can’t shift everything onto the capital police. The Berlin police expect individual “individuals or small groups who are prone to violence”, but assume that participants generally “aim for peaceful meetings”.
Since the terrorist attack by the Islamist Hamas Israel On October 7th there are repeated rallies in the capital. According to the police, a total of 45 pro-Palestinian demonstrations were registered, of which 20 were banned. Last weekend were Well over 10,000 people marched through Kreuzberg in solidarity with Palestine pulled.
Broadcast: rbb24 Abendschau, November 4th, 2023, 7:30 p.m
