Greta Thunberg in sight: Police stops Protestcamp in Dortmund!

Greta Thunberg in sight: Police stops Protestcamp in Dortmund!

On Monday, October 7, 2024, thousands of people demonstrated in Germany on the occasion of the anniversary of the devastating Hamas attack on Israel. In the middle of these pro-Palestinian protests in Berlin-Kreuzberg, the well-known climate activist Greta Thunberg was also present. She made her support for the Palestinians to express sharp criticism of the German government. Thunberg explained in a video that was published on the "X" platform: "Germany is complicit in the genocide and financed and legitimizes the crew and genocide by the apartheid state of Israel." The situation escalated in Berlin when there were riots and 14 police officers were injured.

The controversial events in Berlin had an immediate impact on further planned protests. Thunberg wanted to join a protest camp in Dortmund, but the police immediately took measures to prevent their presence.

police Dortmund takes measures

The ProtestCamp, which took place on Tuesday, October 8, on Emil-Figge-Straße in Dortmund, was stopped abruptly. The Dortmund police quickly reacted to the news that the climate -active Swede could be present. According to the information, the campsman of the camp announced this for the police, which led to immediate measures.

The police announced a ban on meeting for the protest camp after a comprehensive location evaluation was carried out. This was considered necessary to avoid possible risks and riots. The decision to dissolve the camp was made by the authorities because they feared that Thunberg's appearance would significantly increase the number of participants and could possibly make control of the event difficult. The police added that the recent incidents in connection with Thunberg led to the evaluation that they had to be regarded as a “violent participant”.

The reasons for the intervention of the police

The emergency services expressed concerns that the limitation of the number of participants by Thunberg's awareness cannot be guaranteed and that the temporal structure of the assembly could be in danger. These assessments led the police to order the immediate dissolution of the protest camp. The chairman of the meeting passed on the instructions and officially declared the event over, which led to the fact that the camp was quickly dismantled.

The situation raises questions about the reactions of the police and their assessments. Critics argue that the aggressive approach to peaceful meetings concerns fundamental freedom rights. The incidents in Dortmund are part of a larger context in which protests against current politics and the associated conflicts repeatedly.

Details on the incidents are documented by numerous reports, whereby many eyewitnesses report a rather peaceful atmosphere in the period before Thunberg's expected arrival. The police's measures could therefore be considered exaggerated. The discussion about the extent to which such measures are justified could also gain intensity in the coming days, since public opinions on the events in Berlin and Dortmund will surely be sustainable for a long time.

for more information, see the current Reporting on www.derwesten.de .