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NEW YEAR'S EVE

Germany’s NYE celebrations marred by death, injuries and attacks

Amid unusually mild weather, people gathered across Germany to mark the New Year. But with Covid-19 restrictions no longer governing the sale of fireworks and firecrackers, the fire brigade and police had their work cut out dealing with an increased number of incidents caused by pyrotechnics.

Published: 1 January 2023 14:47 CET
Fireworks explode over Berlin's landmark the Brandenburg Gate
Fireworks explode over Berlin's Brandenburg Gate during a New Year's light and music show before midnight to welcome the year 2023, on December 31, 2022. Germany's police and fire brigade reported a large number of fireworks-related incidents and injuries. (Photo by Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP)

In Leipzig, a 17-year-old male was injured so badly when handling fireworks that he later died in hospital, the police said on New Year’s Day.

In Thuringia, two men were seriously injured by exploding fireworks on New Year’s Eve.

A 42-year-old in Friemar near Gotha had to have both his forearms amputated as a result of injuries sustained when handling firecrackers he had ordered online, the police said.

In Schleiz, a 21-year-old lost his hand in an accident involving an illegal explosive device. 

In Saxony-Anhalt, a pedestrian who had been lighting fireworks on the street was hit by a drunk driver and killed. The 42-year-old was thrown several metres across the road by the force of the impact early Sunday morning, police said.  He died at the scene of the accident in Schönebeck.

In Baden-Württemberg, a 39-year-old was seriously injured when a firecracker he had ignited hit his face.

READ ALSO: Why many German cities become a fireworks hell on NYE

Injuries and attacks across Berlin

It was a similar picture across the capital where the Berlin fire brigade carried out more than 1,700 operations between 7pm on New Year’s Eve and 6am on New Year’s morning. This was almost 700 more than a year ago when Covid-19 restrictions were still in place, prohibiting the sale of fireworks and closing clubs and discos.

The fire brigade dealt with brawls, shots from blank guns and firecrackers and rockets thrown at passers-by, buildings and officials, as well as attacks on emergency service vehicles.

According to a preliminary report from the Berlin service on New Year’s Day morning, 22 people were injured by firecrackers and rockets and there were 38 incidents of emergency service workers being attacked, resulting in 18 injuries, including one hospitalisation.

The number of attacks on emergency services had increased significantly since before the pandemic, said a police spokesman in Berlin.

Police officers and firefighters said on Twitter that they were “massively attacked with firecrackers” when attending a burning vehicle and had to request support from additional emergency services.

“There is no justification for this behaviour and I can only condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” said state fire director Karsten Homrighausen.

The sold-out ZDF New Year’s Eve music party at the Brandenburg Gate was a peaceful affair, but long before midnight, the music was drowned out by countless firecrackers and rockets fired on the Straße des 17. Juni behind the Brandenburg Gate.

There was no official fireworks display there this year, but thousands of people who couldn’t make it to the cordoned-off area in front of the gate had brought their own rockets – and their own party – with them. A police spokesman said there were several incidents and altercations with emergency services.

In many districts across the capital from Tempelhof and Moabit to Tiergarten, people were deliberately launching fireworks and firecrackers directly at buses, buildings and passers-by, the police said.

Call for ban on firecrackers

In response to the attacks with firecrackers and rockets on police officers and firefighters, the Berlin police union is demanding a far-reaching ban on firecrackers.

“We have seen across Germany that fireworks are being used specifically as a weapon against people,” said Germany’s police union (GdP) country manager Stephan Weh on New Year’s morning. 

He said discussions on the issue should not wait until next December and that a sales ban should be in place for everyone who doesn’t handle fireworks professionally and responsibly.

“Many hardware stores have already taken a clear position this year,” said Weh.

Member comments

  1. There should be a blanket ban on fireworks at new year night. Wastage of money, damage to the environment and property, public lives at risk.

  2. Pingback: Anonymous
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GERMANY AND RUSSIA

Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

Germany and the Czech Republic on Friday blamed Russia for a series of recent cyberattacks, prompting the European Union to warn Moscow of consequences over its "malicious behaviour in cyberspace".

Published: 4 May 2024 10:29 CEST
Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

The accusations come at a time of strained relations between Moscow and the West following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the European Union’s support for Kyiv.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said a newly concluded government investigation found that a cyberattack targeting members of the Social Democratic Party had been carried out by a group known as APT28.

APT28 “is steered by the military intelligence service of Russia”, Baerbock told reporters during a visit to Australia.

“In other words, it was a state-sponsored Russian cyberattack on Germany and this is absolutely intolerable and unacceptable and will have consequences.”

APT28, also known as Fancy Bear, has been accused of dozens of cyberattacks in countries around the world. Russia denies being behind such actions.

The hacking attack on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD party was made public last year. Hackers exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook to compromise e-mail accounts, according to Berlin.

Berlin on Friday summoned the acting charge d’affaires of the Russian embassy over the incident.

The Russian embassy in Germany said its envoy “categorically rejected the accusations that Russian state structures were involved in the given incident… as unsubstantiated and groundless”.

Arms, aerospace targeted: Berlin 

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the cyber campaign was orchestrated by Russia’s military intelligence service GRU and began in 2022. It also targeted German companies in the armaments and aerospace sectors, she said.

Such cyberattacks are “a threat to our democracy, national security and our free societies”, she told a joint news conference in Prague with her Czech counterpart Vit Rakusan.

“We are calling on Russia again to stop these activities,” Faeser added.

Czech government officials said some of its state institutions had also been the target of cyberattacks blamed on APT28, again by exploiting a weakness in Microsoft Outlook in 2023.

Czech Interior Minister Rakusan said his country’s infrastructure had recently experienced “higher dozens” of such attacks.

“The Czech Republic is a target. In the long term, it has been perceived by the Russian Federation as an enemy state,” he told reporters.

EU, NATO condemnation

The German and Czech findings triggered strong condemnation from the European Union.

“The malicious cyber campaign shows Russia’s continuous pattern of irresponsible behaviour in cyberspace, by targeting democratic institutions, government entities and critical infrastructure providers across the European Union and beyond,” EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said.

The EU would “make use of the full spectrum of measures to prevent, deter and respond to Russia’s malicious behaviour in cyberspace”, he added.

State institutions, agencies and entities in other member states including in Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia and Sweden had been targeted by APT28 in the past, the statement added.

The latest accusations come a day after NATO expressed “deep concern” over Russia’s “hybrid actions” including disinformation, sabotage and cyber interference.

The row also comes as millions of Europeans prepare to go to the polls for the European Parliament elections in June, and concerns about foreign meddling are running high.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky told AFP that “pointing a finger publicly at a specific attacker is an important tool to protect national interests”.

One of the most high-profile incidents so far blamed on Fancy Bear was a cyberattack in 2015 that paralysed the computer network of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag. It forced the entire institution offline for days while it was fixed.

In 2020, the EU imposed sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the APT28 group over the incident.

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