The German Police Trade Union warned of possible violence against emergency services during New Year’s Eve celebrations. DW has more.
Homemade New Year’s fireworks kill two teenagers in western Germany
Two 18-year-old men died after being struck by homemade fireworks on New Year’s Eve in the German city of Bielefeld, police said early Thursday.
The incidents occurred at separate locations in the city in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Both teenage victims suffered fatal facial injuries after igniting the homemade fireworks themselves, police said.
Authorities said, while investigations are ongoing, there was no initial indication of foul play or third-party involvement in either case.
Traditional Berlin New Year party shifted to Hamburg
After the Berlin state government pulled funding for Germany’s traditional New Year’s Eve extravaganza at the Brandenburg Gate, the iconic ZDF-Silvestershow has been swiftly moved to Hamburg.
Thousands of revelers braved drizzly skies and chilly 4-degree temperatures to pack into the HafenCity, Europe’s largest inner-city urban development project, to welcome 2026.
Musical highlights include songs from the Michael Jackson Musical, UK boyband Blue and Michael Patrick Kelly, among many local artists.
A dazzling fireworks display is set to illuminate the Elbe River at midnight.
For decades, Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate hosted Germany’s biggest New Year’s Eve party — a massive open-air event with live music, countdown and huge fireworks, televised nationally.
Due to budget cuts, the Berlin state government cut public funding, which previously reached up to €1 million ($1.17 million) annually, forcing the show’s relocation to the northern port city.
Berlin will see in the New Year with a more intimate DJ party for 20,000 ticketed guests at the Brandenburg Gate and a smaller fireworks display.
Police pursue dozens of leads in Gelsenkirchen bank robbery
Dozens of potential leads have been passed to police in Germany investigating last weekend’s brazen €30 million ($35.2 million) bank heist in Gelsenkirchen.
A police spokeswoman said Wednesday that witnesses observed several men with large bags in the stairwell of a multi-storey car park on Saturday night.
The police said investigators were examining video footage from an adjacent car park showing masked persons and two vehicles.
Surveillance cameras, meanwhile, captured a black car and a white van that the perpetrators may have used.
Other footage published by German media outlets showed a masked man standing in front of a car park ticket machine.
The break-in, one of the largest in German history, was discovered by emergency services early on Monday morning when a fire alarm was set off.
The robbers apparently broke into a branch of the Sparkasse bank and then used a special drill to cut a large hole in the wall through to the vault.
From there, the thieves broke into almost all of the 3,250 safe deposit boxes, making off with the contents.
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-news-police-face-risk-of-violence-on-new-years-eve/live-75279871
