May 1st is the traditional German parade day. After peaceful demonstrations in Berlin, Leipzig and Hamburg, 16 Amazon vans were burned in Berlin.
According to local police reports, demonstrations in Berlin in the early hours of May 1 were "largely untroubled." A total of 3,100 police officers were deployed in Berlin to maintain law and order at five rallies during the so-called "night of Valpurgis," a Berlin police spokesman told AFP on Wednesday. According to reports, four people were arrested at the scene, and in some cases, some people threw "easter eggs" and lit fireworks.
A police spokesperson also confirmed that 16 Amazon transport vehicles were burned in the company's commercial parking lot in Vitnau, Berlin. A fire department spokesman said no one was injured. Because of the fire, a large number of fire trucks were dispatched, and it took emergency responders about two hours to extinguish the fire. Police said they could not establish a link between the arson and the May 1 demonstrations.
According to the preliminary findings, it was assumed that someone had set the fire. Witnesses claimed to have seen several masked perpetrators in the Amazon van.
The Berlin police also reported an individual attack on the police, and thankfully, as of midnight, no police officers were injured.
In addition to this, there was a "queer feminist" demonstration in the Friedrichshain district. Initially about 900 people departed, with nearly 3,000 at the peak. They wanted to cross the districts of Frederikshain and Kreuzberg, notorious for riots. However, the demonstrations were quickly dispersed.
On Wednesday afternoon, thousands of people will march in Berlin's Kreuzberg and Neukern districts for the traditional demonstrations of the so-called "May 1 Revolution". According to police, 5,000 people have already registered, but more participants are expected.
According to the police, anti-Israel and anti-Semitic statements or posters were explicitly prohibited during the demonstrations.
On May 1 alone, 20 events were registered in Berlin. More than 5,000 police officers are on duty. Left-wing demonstrations are also planned in Hamburg, Leipzig and Frankfurt/Main.
On Tuesday night, there were also demonstrations of left-wing and left-wing extremist groups in Hamburg with the aim of queer feminist demonstrations against capital and patriarchy.
About 900 leading female demonstrators from Rote Flora, the left-wing autonomous center of Schanzenviertel, marched in San Paoli on Tuesday night with the slogan "Take back the night", according to police.
A half-naked woman in a mask raises fireworks into the night sky
The procession was accompanied by numerous police officers. At the beginning of the demonstration, Rote Flora set off fireworks on the rooftops of residential buildings, and many demonstrators wore FFP2 masks. There were no major incidents. A police spokesman said: "There were only a few fireworks and smoke canisters, and other than that everything was quiet. ”