Germany's Gen Z Protests Turn Violent as Frankfurt Riots Leave Over 100 Police Hurt

Youth-led demonstrations over living costs, schools and public spending drew tens of thousands of people into the streets of German cities on Saturday, Oct. 31, before turning violent after dark in Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin. In Frankfurt, rioters smashed shop windows and looted stores along the Zeil shopping street, and Hesse state officials said on Sunday that more than 100 police officers had been injured there.

The marches were organized by the initiative Gen Z regelt, roughly "Gen Z takes charge." According to AFP, the group said some 120,000 people took part nationwide, below the roughly 180,000 it had expected. The Associated Press put turnout at more than 100,000, mostly young people, who called for more government investment in education, housing and climate protection and for daily life to become more affordable.

What the protesters were demanding

Gen Z regelt spokesperson Lina Friedrich told the BBC: "What matters most to us is better support for the health and education systems. We are against compulsory military service and we are in favour of a fairer distribution of the burden." AFP reported that the movement also objects to sharply increased military spending and to a new voluntary service model aimed at boosting troop numbers, which some participants fear is a step toward bringing back conscription.

The German marches were part of a wider wave of mostly youth-driven protests across Europe. On the same day, more than 320,000 people demonstrated in France for a third consecutive weekend, according to French interior ministry figures cited by the BBC and DW.

Looting in Frankfurt and clashes in other cities

The daytime rallies were largely peaceful. Frankfurt police said up to 8,000 people joined the march there, which police broke up after officers were repeatedly targeted with firecrackers, bottles and stones, according to a dpa report published by Tag24. Groups then moved into the city center. Police said in a statement quoted by AFP that "violent riots" were taking place: "Windows have been smashed at several shops. Molotov cocktails are also being thrown at emergency personnel."

Police sealed off the Zeil, posting on X: "Anyone not involved who is still on the Zeil can leave. Access to the Zeil is no longer possible." A gun shop was among the stores broken into; police said they arrested a suspect and seized two weapons. Special police units, water cannon and a helicopter were deployed, according to Euronews. Police told public broadcaster hr that the situation calmed around 3 a.m. local time and that more than 30 people had been provisionally detained by Sunday morning.

At a press conference on Sunday, Hesse Interior Minister Roman Poseck gave a fuller account, according to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. He said up to 1,300 officers had been on duty, that 54 people between the ages of 13 and 29 had been detained, and that 17 shops were damaged and five looted. One officer lost teeth after being hit in the face by a stone, he said. Frankfurt police chief Stefan Müller said a special investigative unit had been set up overnight and that extensive video footage should help identify suspects.

In Berlin, an evening protest separate from the official Gen Z regelt events grew to about 3,500 people. Police said 27 officers suffered minor injuries and up to 56 people were temporarily detained, the FAZ reported. In Hamburg, police said about 120 people were taken into custody after rioters built burning barricades and threw stones, bottles and fireworks. A Hamburg police spokesperson told Euronews: "Unfortunately, troublemakers have today mingled with the peaceful demonstrators in order to deliberately provoke and commit criminal offences." In Cologne, officers near the cathedral were pelted with bottles and bicycles, DW reported. Cologne police chief Johannes Hermanns said it was "deeply saddening that young people who wanted to peacefully demonstrate for their future were infiltrated today by extremists who had nothing but violence in mind."

Who is to blame: officials and organizers respond

On Saturday night, Poseck said "around 100 clearly identified left-wing extremists" had infiltrated the Frankfurt protest, the BBC reported. On Sunday he also pointed to violent groups of young people, saying police believed they had faced 1,000 to 1,500 violent troublemakers, mainly from migrant backgrounds, while adding that most of those detained hold German citizenship, the FAZ reported. Hesse Governor Boris Rhein said: "I am shocked by the violent excesses in Frankfurt, which will not go unpunished."

Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt accused "violent left-wing groups and troublemakers from the immigrant community" of hijacking the peaceful demonstrations, the AP reported. "The rioters and looters will be identified and held accountable," he told the Bild newspaper. Speaking before the worst of the Frankfurt violence, senior police union official Andreas Rosskopf told the Rheinische Post, according to DW and ZDF: "The Gen Z protests have turned out to be very peaceful."

Opposition leaders cautioned against letting the riots define the movement. Left party co-leader Ines Schwerdtner said the violence outside the protests could not be justified but warned it was being used to discredit demonstrations she described as peaceful and legitimate, Der Spiegel reported. Greens co-leader Franziska Brantner condemned the rioting and said the federal government must respond to the young protesters' message.

Gen Z regelt posted a statement on Instagram distancing itself from "any form of violence, as well as violent acts by other groups or individuals" who were not part of its demonstrations. A spokesperson told hr that the initiative had no influence over what happened after its rallies ended. A press spokesperson told dpa, according to hr, that the group plans to join Europe-wide protests on Nov. 20. Tagesschau reported that the core organizing team consists of five people, three of whom want to remain anonymous. Frankfurt police said property damage was considerable but not yet quantified.