The vast majority of those arrested for riots in Berlin on New Year’s Eve are migrants, local police have confirmed.
On Tuesday evening, Berlin police provided an update on the situation of those arrested in connection with the civil disorder witnessed across the German capital on Saturday.
The figure of 159 arrests was amended to 145, citing duplication in the initial reporting.
Of those arrested, 100 have a migration background while just 45 hold German citizenship.
A total of 18 different nationalities were recorded among the transgressors, a police spokesperson revealed. The largest migrant contingent of 27 suspects originated from Afghanistan, while 21 were Syrian.
All suspects, the majority of whom were men, have now been released following the completion of required police measures.
More than 20 suspects were also detained in the port city of Hamburg during a celebratory evening that swiftly descended into chaos, resulting in injuries to police officers and the torching of emergency service vehicles.
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“The issue of migration background also plays a role here,” revealed Interior Senator Andy Grote (SPD), speaking to local broadcaster NDR.
The senator called for severe punitive measures against those who targeted emergency responders, saying: “That’s about the meanest thing you can ever imagine, attacking those who want to help others.”
Germany’s Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faesar has refrained from highlighting the undeniable link between the New Year’s Eve mayhem and mass migration, tweeting only to call on those who attacked emergency responders to be “punished to the full extent of the law.”
Other politicians were less diplomatic. Jens Spahn, the deputy leader of the CDU parliamentary group, told the t-online news outlet on Monday that “unregulated migration, failed integration, and a lack of respect for the state” is to blame for the “unspeakable” acts of violence.
