German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt singled out violent left-wing groups and people he described as troublemakers from migrant communities for unrest alongside youth protests, as other politicians defended peaceful demonstrators’ demands.
Dobrindt made the accusation in comments to Bild. He said the disturbances were less severe than those in Paris.
AFP reported that tens of thousands joined demonstrations organized by GenZ regelt! on Oct. 31. The group sought attention for the cost of living, education spending and budget cuts.
Masked rioters looted shops in Frankfurt, while violence also occurred in Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg, AFP reported. The agency said police used water cannon as youths threw Molotov cocktails.
Hesse minister-president Boris Rhein called the violence “totally unacceptable” on X. Die Linke leader Ines Schwerdtner told Rheinische Post that vandalism by small groups did not erase the demands of peaceful demonstrators. Greens co-leader Franziska Brantner told the same newspaper that the violence damaged those demonstrators’ cause.
GenZ regelt! said on its website that it is calling for further demonstrations Nov. 14.
