The rush was huge – and didn’t let up. The Hamburg demonstration of tens of thousands against the AfD and other right-wing extremists was canceled due to security concerns.
In the end there were said to be well over 50,000 people and many more Hamburg residents were still on the way. The demonstration under the motto “Hamburg stands up” against right-wing extremism was canceled on Friday afternoon for security reasons. This was reported by one star-Reporter from the center of the Hanseatic city.
“We have to end the rally early,” said Kazim Abaci from the Entrepreneurs Without Borders association, which helped organize the rally on Friday. He cited safety concerns. People in the crowd collapsed and the fire department could no longer get through. After Abaci initially spoke of 130,000 participants in the Jungfernstieg, the organizers later corrected the number to 80,000. Police said there were 50,000 demonstrators.
There had been a dense crowd in the streets around the Binnenalster since the afternoon, and according to reporters, participants sometimes took refuge in neighboring shops. Ambulances also had difficulty getting through due to the rush. The subway and S-Bahn network in the center of the Hanseatic city was completely overloaded.
Demonstration against AfD paralyzes Hamburg’s city center
The demonstration was actually supposed to take place on the town hall market. However, the AfD parliamentary group of the Hamburg citizenship scheduled a meeting at short notice, so that the ban mile rule came into effect, according to which no meetings are allowed in the area around the building. Eyewitnesses reported that the police were unable to maintain the restricted area due to the influx of crowds – ultimately the authorities and organizers took action and broke off the demonstration. There is also concern “that people could fall into the Alster,” the “Hamburger Abendblatt” quoted a police representative as saying. The temperatures in Hamburg were just above freezing on Friday afternoon.
Among others, First Mayor Peter Tschentscher appeared at the demonstration. “The message to the AfD and its right-wing networks is: We are the majority and we are strong because we are united and because we are determined not to let our country and our democracy be destroyed a second time after 1945,” said the SPD -Politician. There were repeated chants of “Nazis out.”
The meeting in Hamburg is just one of many that are taking place across Germany these days. Around 100 further demonstrations against right-wing extremism have been announced for the weekend.
Hamburg, Cologne, Leipzig
Seven days, more than 150,000 people: Germany-wide protests against the right
The trigger was research by “Correctiv”, according to which there was a meeting of AfD representatives and other right-wing extremists in Potsdam at the end of November at which the expulsion of millions of people from Germany was discussed.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated several times since it was first published.
Sources: , DPA news agency
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
