Hesse minister says 54 arrested after Frankfurt unrest

Roman Poseck, the interior minister of Hesse, announced on Sunday that police had detained 54 individuals following overnight violence in Frankfurt. The age range of those arrested spans from 13 to 29. He stated that the majority hold German nationality, though police information indicates many of the participants in the disturbances have an immigrant background.

Poseck told a press conference that rioters damaged 17 shops in the financial hub, with five of those stores suffering looting. He described the scene as shocking and said there was no reason to minimize what occurred. He noted that police deployed 1,300 officers to manage the situation, and more than 100 of them were injured during the clashes.

The unrest began on Saturday when tens of thousands of people gathered in Frankfurt and dozens of other German cities. The demonstrations were organized by the campaign group Gen Z regelt, which translates to Gen Z takes charge. Protesters demanded lower living costs and improved education systems. While the movement started as a broad rally, Frankfurt became the primary site of violent confrontation.

Frankfurt police reported specific acts of aggression during the night. Windows were smashed, and emergency services were targeted with petrol bombs, rocks, and bottles. The group Gen Z regelt had planned the rallies to pressure the government on economic issues, but the violence in Frankfurt set the city apart from other locations where the protests remained largely orderly.

Alexander Dobrindt, the German interior minister and a member of the Christian Social Union, addressed reporters on Sunday. He said the perpetrators would be identified and held responsible. He expressed that severe penalties were expected and that the government would not accept such rioting. He accused troublemakers from the immigrant community of acting alongside left-wing extremists, though he did not name specific far-left groups involved.

Dobrindt stated that a policing strategy using a large security presence across multiple locations had been effective. He also mentioned that border controls were tightened before the protests due to fears that extremist groups from abroad might use the events to stir riots. In France, similar protests have continued for a third weekend, following heavy damage to shops and public buildings on October 17.

Poseck added that police estimates suggest they were dealing with between 1,000 and 1,500 violent troublemakers. He emphasized that these individuals were predominantly from an immigrant background. The minister praised the security forces for preventing the violence from spreading further across the city.