The far-left riots that have raged across France, Belgium and Italy for weeks have now reached Germany, where major cities saw unrestrained looting, arson and clashes with authorities on Saturday, 31 October.
Frankfurt witnessed especially wild scenes, as rioters attacked police with Molotov cocktails and smashed their way into a Snipes clothing store. Hesse’s State Interior Minister Roman Poseck revealed that around 1,000–1,500 individuals had participated specifically in the destruction, mainly people of immigrant background, adding that far-left extremism was the main driver behind the violence.
‘This group of perpetrators was predominantly migrant in character. And we must confront that as well,’ Poseck declared on Sunday, adding that there must be ‘no false taboos’ surrounding the perpetrators’ backgrounds. He pledged tougher action against violent migrant-background youth groups, warning that Frankfurt had become a magnet for ‘troublemakers’ travelling from surrounding areas.
The scale of the destruction was indeed extraordinary. Masked mobs rampaged through Frankfurt’s shopping district, smashing storefronts, erecting burning barricades and attacking emergency services. Rioters even stormed a weapons shop, stealing blank-firing guns, which were subsequently recovered by police. More than 100 officers were injured, including one who lost teeth after being struck in the face with a stone. Seventeen businesses were damaged and five looted.
Authorities deployed water cannon, armoured vehicles and special forces, arresting 54 suspects aged between 13 and 29.
Frankfurt Police President Stefan Müller also confirmed that the looting was largely carried out by young men of immigrant background who were already known to authorities, without any identifiable political motive. This mirrors the modus operandi already familiar from France: far-left and Antifa-linked militant groups infiltrate protests and incite violence, while the broader mobilization is largely driven by youth of immigrant background.
German intelligence had warned before the riots that Antifa and other far-left organizations intended to exploit the nationwide ‘Gen Z regelt’ demonstrations. Hamburg’s domestic intelligence service specifically identified Offen Antifaschistisches Treffen, Roter Aufbau and Interventionistische Linke, alongside foreign-linked extremist groups Young Struggle and Thawra, as participating in a mobilization inspired partly by the French riots.
In Hamburg, black-clad rioters torched barricades and attacked police, leaving 120 people in custody. Similar clashes erupted in Cologne and Berlin, with masked militants throwing stones, bottles and fireworks at officers.
Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) leader Alice Weidel blamed governing Christian Democratic Union (CDU) policies for fostering left-wing extremism alongside ‘uncontrolled migration’, while Hesse AfD leader Robert Lambrou accused authorities of failing to prevent ‘French conditions’.
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