Germany points to 'extreme leftist forces and troublemakers with immigrant background' behind violent protests

(London = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Ji-yeon = The German government pointed out left-wing extremists and rioters with immigrant backgrounds as behind the violent protests that took place in cities across the country, including Frankfurt and Cologne, on the 31st of last month (local time) and emphasized a hard-line response policy.

According to DPA and AFP on the 1st, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, a member of Germany's centrist-conservative Christian Social Party (CSU), said in an interview with the popular newspaper Bild, "Violent leftist groups and troublemakers from the migrant community have hijacked the peaceful protests."

Minister Dobrindt said, “We will find the rioters and looters and hold them accountable,” and emphasized, “There must be strong punishment for such acts of destroying the peace.”

On the 31st of last month, protests took place across Germany demanding improved education and relief of living hardships, while violence and looting also broke out in some areas.

Hesse State Interior Minister Roman Pozek, a member of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), held a press conference in Frankfurt on the 1st and announced that 17 stores in Frankfurt were damaged and five of them were looted.

Of the 1,300 police officers deployed to Frankfurt, about 100 were injured in clashes with protesters, and 54 teenagers and young adults aged 13 to 29 were arrested. Most of the suspects are German nationals.

Minister Pozek said, “There are currently 1,000 to 1,500 people who have caused chaos through acts of violence, and most of them are from the immigrant community.”

“The violent potential of left-wing extremists and violent young people, most of whom have immigrant backgrounds, has been revealed,” he said, adding, “We must not avoid this issue. We must abandon the hasty taboo attitude (about migrant crimes).”

Herbert Royle, the interior minister of the North Rhine-Westphalia state government, also emphasized the need for a stern response, saying, "Those who cause trouble on the streets by throwing stones at police and setting off firecrackers have no political justification, and those who cover their faces want noise and violence, not discussion and persuasion."

Cologne Police Chief Johannes Hermans also said, "It is very unfortunate that extremists who have no intention of anything but violence have infiltrated young people who wanted to protest peacefully for the future."

First, even in France, where violent protests have spread, the government has classified violent acts such as burning and damaging public facilities and furniture as 'riots', which are different from student and labor union protests, and has criticized them as organized actions led by far-left forces.

Furthermore, President Emmanuel Macron said, "Social media (SNS) undermines our democracy. It becomes a tool for extremization and inciting the worst impulses," and claimed that organized acts of violence are spreading through SNS.

In addition, the 'Black Bloc', a far-left anarchist force that has been appearing in French protests for decades, was pointed out as the mastermind behind the violence.

However, the French government distanced itself from the claims of the far-right and right-wing camps that more directly pointed to 'immigrants'.

After U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly spoke out blaming 'Islamists' and immigrants, President Macron criticized foreign leaders ahead of the election for trying to profit at the expense of France.