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CRIME

Hooligans ‘attack migrants’ in Chemnitz after stabbing at city festival

Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday condemned far-right protesters who were "hunting down" foreigners in street mobs following the killing of a German man, allegedly by a Syrian and an Iraqi.

Hooligans ‘attack migrants’ in Chemnitz after stabbing at city festival
Police in Chemnitz on Sunday. Photo: DPA

The far-right movement PEGIDA called for demonstrations for a second straight day after a gathering of around 800 people in the city of Chemnitz in the country's ex-communist east degenerated into violent chaos, forcing police to call in reinforcements.

Several media outlets, including the Bild tabloid, reported that some demonstrators Sunday had shouted “we are the people”, “get lost” and “you're not welcome here” at those they took to be immigrants.

Prosecutors said Monday that police had arrested a 23-year-old Syrian man and an Iraqi man, 22, on suspicion they had stabbed to death the 35-year-old German man in an altercation in the early hours of Sunday.

“The investigation, especially into the motive, the details of the crime and the murder weapon continue,” they said in a brief statement.

In the far-right riots that followed, some protesters used bottles to attack foreign-looking people, freelance journalist Johannes Grunert, who reports frequently on the far-right scene, told Spiegel Online.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert stressed Berlin's strong condemnation of the violent protests.

“Such riotous assemblies, the hunting down of people who appear to be from different backgrounds or the attempt to spread hate in the streets, these have no place in our country,” he said.

Asked about an apparent call by an MP from the far-right AfD party for vigilante action, Seibert warned that it is the legal system that delivers justice in a constitutional democracy.

AfD lawmaker Markus Frohnmaier had written on Twitter: “If the state can no longer protect the citizen, then people will go on the streets and protect themselves.”

Protest, counter-protest

In the violent altercation at 3am Sunday, on the sidelines of a street festival, two other men, aged 33 and 38, were hospitalised with severe 
injuries, police said.

After the street demonstrations that followed on Sunday, Chemnitz mayor Barbara Ludwig said that “if I look at what has happened here on Sunday, I'm horrified”. 

“The fact that people can agree to meet… run through town and threaten people is bad,” she told regional broadcaster MDR.

As outrage grew over the scenes of xenophobic violence by the mostly male protesters, left-leaning activists called for a counter-protest on Monday in the city, hours before PEGIDA supporters were due to gather.

In its call for a demonstration at 6:30 pm (1630 GMT), PEGIDA's Chemnitz and West Saxony regional chapter said: “Muster strength from anger and sadness! Only together can we ensure that his death was not pointless.”

Saxony state has become a hotspot for racist hate crimes, as misgivings run deep in the region against the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers to Germany since 2015.

The state is also the birthplace of the Islamophobic PEGIDA movement, which is linked to the AfD — a party that has scooped up voters who blame Merkel for the migrant influx.

Surveys suggest the AfD is on track to become the second biggest party in Saxony when regional elections are held there next year.

Results of last year's general election showed that in Chemnitz itself the AfD has as many voters as Merkel's centre-right CDU.

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EURO 2024

Germany prevents hundreds of illegal border entries ahead of Euro 2024

Police detected well over a thousand illegal entries or attempted entries into Germany shortly before the start of the Euro 2024 championship.

Germany prevents hundreds of illegal border entries ahead of Euro 2024

German authorities put temporary border controls in place on June 7th in the run up to the UEFA European Football Championships in a bid to clamp down on any violence. 

Police announced that shortly before the start of the tournament on June 14th, 1,400 unauthorised entries were detected during border checks.

A total of 900 people were prevented from entering Germany or deported during this time, while 173 arrest warrants were served, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told German newspaper Bild am Sonntag.

“This shows that our measures are working,” Faeser said, adding that the aim is to recognise and stop possible violent offenders at an early stage. 

According to the minister, 19 perpetrators wanted by police due to politically motivated crime were also found, while 34 people smugglers were arrested.

The extended checks are taking place at the borders with Denmark, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg where no checks were previously carried out.

READ ALSO: Germany to check passports at Danish border during the Euros

Travellers from the Schengen zone may also face random checks during air travel, at ports or on buses and trains. 

The controls are in force until July 19th – a few days after the Euro 2024 final on July 14th.

Travellers should be prepared for possible longer waiting times at borders – and should carry valid ID as well as any travel documents they need to enter Germany. 

READ ALSO: What to know about Germany’s extra border checks for Euro 2024

22,000 officers on the job

Security is a huge factor for the event that sees 24 teams competing in several German cities. Millions of visitors from all over the world are heading to Germany to stadiums and fan zones across the country.

A total of 22,000 federal police officers are on duty to ensure security during the event – the largest deployment in the history of Germany’s police force, according to Faeser.

“They are protecting our borders, airports and rail traffic,” said the minister.

Existing controls at the borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland were recently extended by six months until mid-December. The ministry said the aim is to continue combating smuggling offences and limiting irregular migration.

Spike in number of unauthorised entries on eastern borders

It comes as the number of migrants at the German borders with Poland and the Czech Republic – along the so-called ‘Belarus route’ – has risen again.

Police recorded 2,215 unauthorised entries on this route between the beginning of January and the end of May, authorities told DPA.

In January and February there were 26 and 25 respectively, in March the number rose to 412, in April to 861 and in May, according to initial data, to 891.

A total of 1,021 unauthorised arrivals have been detected in Brandenburg since the beginning of the year, 867 in Saxony and 327 in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

But despite this recent rising trend, the overall figures are significantly lower than last year. By the end of May 2023, federal police had recorded 6,000 unauthorised entries on the ‘Belarus route’, as reported by Mediendienst Integration, which processes police statistics.

Poland and the EU have accused Russia and Belarus of deliberately helping people from crisis regions to enter the EU without permission by providing visas and logistics since 2021.

Poland has now erected a 5.5 metre high fence at its external EU border. But according to Polish border guards, people are still trying to cross the border. Since the beginning of the year, 16,500 attempts have been registered, compared to 11,200 in the same period in 2023.

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