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POLICE

Riot police with water cannon evict squatters

Police in riot gear are currently attempting to evict a group of long-term squatters from a house in Vienna’s 2nd district.

Riot police with water cannon evict squatters
Riot police remove one of the activists. Photo: APA/Neubauer

Since 5:00 am this morning the activists, who have been occupying most of a house in Mühlfeldgasse for over two years, have been preparing for their eviction by blocking the entrance to the house and the street with sofas and other bulky piece of furniture.

Around 30 police cars and at least 200 police, some dressed in riot gear and gas masks, are at the scene and the entire street has been sealed off.

Police reportedly had to use chainsaws to get through some of the barricades blocking the entrance to the house. 

Some journalists have not been allowed into the area, "out of concern for their safety". Passers-by have had their bags searched. 

ORF journalist Petra Pichler reports that there are 1,700 police waiting to be called in if the situation escalates.

According to informal police sources, one policeman was injured when a TV was thrown from one of the upper floors.

The Nordbahnstraße has been shut to traffic between Praterstern and Darwingasse.


Photo: APA (Neubauer)

A police spokesman said there are worries that a group of German anarchists may have travelled down to support the Viennese squatters.

It is unclear how many people were, or still are in the building – but unofficial sources say between 20 and 50.

A police helicopter is circling the area and there is also a truck with water cannons nearby.

Many people on Twitter are commenting on what they say is a disproportionate police response. 

Vienna Greens politician Georg Prack said that in his opinion "the police operation bears no relation to the occasion. Hundreds of police officers, an armoured car, water cannons, and large-scale road closures are unsettling the local population." 

PICTURE GALLERY: Police prepare to evict anarchist squat

The squat, which calls itself Pizzeria Anarchia, is the only one in Vienna. The owner reportedly invited the group of young anarchists to move into an empty apartment himself, in November 2011. 

The place is badly in need of renovations and the owner hoped that the anarchists would scare off the older tenants who were refusing to move, and clear the way for a new real estate project.

However, the squatters became sympathetic to the tenants' plight, as they explained in a recent blog post.

Castella GmbH currently owns the building, and has offered the squatters a space in Vienna's 15th district. They are, however, refusing to move, as they say the owners are only interested in using them to "increase their profits". 

"Tactics which were used by Castella GmbH to try and make [residents] leave include: vandalism of the supply systems, damaging the roof to allow rain to enter the flats, refusal to carry out maintenance work, nightly visits of intimidating individuals, financial offers and attacks with Butyric acid, used oil and paint," Pizzeria Anarchia's blog post said. 

The interior of the squat. Photo: fm5ottensheim.blogspot

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CRIME

Austria detains suspected Islamists amid security fears

Authorities in Austria have detained three people amid concerns over calls for terror attacks on December 24th.

Austria detains suspected Islamists amid security fears

Austria on Sunday said three people were detained for suspected involvement in an “Islamist network”, as Vienna and Cologne step up police controls citing heightened security concerns during Christmas.

German police are carrying out strict controls at the entry of the cathedral in the western city of Cologne following a “danger warning” for New Year’s Eve.

Austrian police have also stepped up checks, especially around churches, religious events and Christmas markets in Vienna, citing an “increased risk”.

Austrian authorities “intervening in an Islamist network” made four arrests Saturday, the interior ministry said Sunday.

A ministry spokesman said of the four, three had been detained pending further investigations.

“There was no immediate threat of an attack in Vienna,” he told AFP, declining to comment further.

According to the German daily Bild, one arrest was also made in Germany.

The arrested suspects are said to be Tajiks who allegedly wanted to carry out attacks for Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), an IS offshoot in Afghanistan, Bild reported.

“Terrorist actors across Europe are calling for attacks on Christian events — especially around December 24th,” Vienna police said in a statement.

Besides Austria and Germany, Spain also received indications that an Islamist group was planning several attacks in Europe, possibly on New Year’s Eve and Christmas, Bild said.

According to the newspaper, the targets of these attacks could be Christmas masses in Cologne, Vienna and Madrid.

In July, a cell of suspected Islamists from IS-K was dismantled in Germany and the Netherlands.

Those arrested in Germany were said at the time to have been planning an attack in the country.

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