With Halloween approaching on Oct. 31, German security authorities are intensifying preparations for planned youth protests in more than 20 cities, warning that the events could be overtaken by violent actors in patterns seen during recent mass unrest in France.
Many of the videos feature different social media influencers calling for French-style protests.
“On Oct. 31, we will all be on the streets. The French showed us how, now we’re following suit,” said one influencer who earned over 1 million views on TikTok.
"On Oct. 31, we will all be on the streets. The French showed us how, now we’re following suit."
Social media influencers are calling for French-style protests on Halloween night in Germany.
There are now warnings from police of potential unrest.
Stephan Weh, head of the Berlin branch of the police union (GdP), stated: "We must be extremely careful that radical forces do not co-opt democratic protest as in France, use it to live out fantasies of violence, abuse the freedom of assembly, and feed the narrative of a police force hostile to citizens."
GdP national chairman Jochen Kopelke warned of "unpredictable" protests on Halloween night with a risk factor of “young riot migrants who feel like using violence against the police.”
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— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) October 25, 2026Police union and political figures have issued a number of warnings. Stephan Weh, head of the Berlin branch of the police union (GdP), stated: “We must be extremely careful that radical forces do not co-opt democratic protest as in France, use it to live out fantasies of violence, abuse the freedom of assembly, and feed the narrative of a police force hostile to citizens.”
He added that the Halloween night timing compounds risks, given the common use of pyrotechnics during the night.
The protests stem from an initiative known as “Gen Z steht auf,” or “Gen Z stands up” in English, which has called for simultaneous demonstrations in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Leipzig, and others. Organizers, who report thousands of pre-registrations on their site, demand greater investment in education and health care, measures against rising living costs, climate action, and opposition to conscription.
Andreas Roßkopf of the GdP’s federal police section promised that state and federal forces “will proceed massively and consistently” against any riots, warning of radicals mixing into the demonstrations to attack officers “with violence and brutality” or simply to destroy property.
Many videos have called for peaceful protests, but others have alluded to the potential for rioting or looting.
These plans have drawn sharp attention after the Oct. 17 protests across France, which saw demonstrations devolve into violent riots involving masked groups setting buildings ablaze, looting shops, clashing with police, and causing widespread damage.
Authorities reported well over 1,000 arrests and hundreds of injured officers. Further online calls for Halloween gatherings targeting public buildings have also circulated in France as well on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
In Germany, the Federal Interior Ministry has confirmed ongoing risk assessments coordinated with partners including France and Italy, while the German domestic intelligence service (BfV) is increasing surveillance of relevant websites and social-media channels. A ministry spokesman noted the distinction between “peaceful student protests” and “a violence-prone extremist scene that potentially uses such protests to spread violence.”
Hesse Interior Minister Roman Poseck (CDU) said authorities have the date “firmly in view” and that the protests are already being instrumentalized from the left spectrum.
He emphasized that police will be strongly positioned, will not tolerate violence against persons or property, and must prevent France’s situation from spilling over.
Bavaria’s Joachim Herrmann (CSU) urged that comparable tendencies “must be nipped in the bud,” describing the French events not as student protests but as heavy riots involving left-extremists and predominantly migrant men in street battles, arson, and looting.
GdP national chairman Jochen Kopelke has highlighted unpredictability as the core problem of the Halloween protests, unlike more routine large events such as New Year’s Eve, May 1, or football matches. Referring to reports from French colleagues, he described “street battles” and noted German precedents including the G20 in Hamburg and scenes in Leipzig-Connewitz and Berlin’s Rigaer Straße.
He warned of possible simultaneous, digitally mobilized demonstrations across multiple German and European cities, and of “young riot migrants who are included to use violence against the police.” Such actors, he said, “must be kept in check and can expect no mercy from us.”
Manuel Ostermann of the federal police union has cautioned that multi-day unrest with ugly images and possibly brutal violence cannot be ruled out, while insisting German forces are better prepared than their French counterparts and will permit no lawless zones.
