Protests against rising living costs and cuts to public services turned violent in Frankfurt on Saturday night, with masked rioters looting shops and clashing with police.
Frankfurt, Germany’s financial hub, was among several cities where disturbances followed largely peaceful daytime demonstrations. Violence was also reported in Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin.
Police said they used water cannons and pepper spray in Frankfurt after officers came under attack with fireworks, stones and petrol bombs. Several police officers were injured during the unrest.
According to AFP, police closed a large section of Frankfurt’s main shopping street, while officers made arrests following the looting of shops.
The demonstrations were organised by the campaign group Gen Z regelt, meaning “Gen Z takes charge”, which called for protests in 34 cities, including Frankfurt, Cologne, Munich and Berlin.
The protesters demanded greater spending on education and public services, measures to address rising living costs and an end to plans to restore compulsory military service.
Lina Friedrich, a spokesperson for Gen Z regelt, said the demonstrations were intended to promote “peace and freedom” rather than “war and coercion”.
“What matters most to us is better support for the health and education systems,” she said, adding that the movement opposed compulsory military service and supported a fairer distribution of the burden.
Organisers had expected around 180,000 people to participate nationwide. Police figures from Saturday afternoon put the combined turnout in Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich at up to 18,000, according to Reuters.
The organisers subsequently said more than 100,000 people had joined demonstrations across Germany, dpa reported. A nationwide police estimate was not available.
Meanwhile, AFP reported that the evening demonstration in Berlin where clashes occurred was separate from the Gen Z regelt protest. In Cologne, a police spokesperson said some later disturbances appeared more closely connected to Halloween celebrations than to the earlier demonstrations.
Gen Z regelt reiterated its rejection of violence, saying the overwhelming majority of participants had remained peaceful and that their conduct should not be overshadowed by the unrest.
The protests followed similar youth-led demonstrations in France, where recent rallies have also witnessed clashes and looting.