Evening demonstration of May 1st: Police with a large contingent
Created: 05/01/2022Updated: 05/01/2022 21:21
Participants walk through the city on May 1, 2021 in the demonstration procession.
© Kay Nietfeld/dpa
Thousands of people parade through Neukölln on the evening of May 1st.
The police have also prepared for possible outbreaks of violence with a large contingent.
Berlin - The so-called Revolutionary May Day demonstration started on Sunday evening in Berlin-Neukölln with several thousand people.
The police secured the route with a large contingent.
Left and radical left groups had called for the protest.
Berlin's Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) had previously announced that the police would intervene massively in the event of violence.
A police spokesman said that until the early evening, May 1st in Berlin had "passed peacefully and without disruption".
The authority spoke of around 14,000 participants in the evening.
The demonstration wanted to run from Hertzbergplatz to Kreuzberg to Oranienplatz on the evening of the May holiday.
Shortly after the start, the police stopped the crowd to check some of the flags that had been shown.
"After the flags were partially rolled up, the elevator is now running again," the police said on Twitter.
First firecrackers were fired into the sky.
The protest march was led by a block of mainly Turkish and Arabic migrants known as "Migrantifa".
Many police officers with helmets ran ahead.
In the huge crowd, demonstrators waved flags and banners could be seen.
Some of the streets were cordoned off, and many police vans were stationed.
Almost 6,000 officers have secured numerous demonstrations in the capital since the morning.
Interior Senator Spranger had said a few days before May 1st that she also expected outbreaks of violence in the evening.
500 participants from the left-wing extremist scene are expected.
A small part of the demonstrators will probably take advantage of the situation to throw stones, pyrotechnics or bottles.
A total of around 20 demonstrations were announced that day in Berlin.
May 1st was also marked by traditional trade union rallies.
There was an incident at the Brandenburg Gate: Berlin's governing mayor Franziska Giffey (SPD) was insulted and an egg was thrown at her.
However, an employee fended this off with an umbrella.
Speakers for the Senate and the DGB confirmed the incident, which could also be seen on videos on Twitter.
Giffey gave a speech at the central May Day event of the German Trade Union Confederation.
During the May 1st demonstration by left-wing groups in the evening, the police feared that violence could break out, especially at Kottbusser Tor.
The windows of the controversial police station, which is planned for 2023, have been protected as a precaution.
Local residents welcome the project in the place with a lot of crime and party life, but it is rejected by left-wing groups.
According to the police, around 200 people demonstrated there on Saturday.
It had remained largely peaceful.
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dpa
