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Germany Gen Z Protests End in Riots and Looting in Frankfurt, Cologne and Berlin

Largely peaceful "Gen Z regelt" youth protests in some 30 German cities were followed by riots and looting. In Frankfurt, police report 54 arrests and about 100 officers hurt.

Raj ·Founder & Editor
Published in World · 3 min read ·
Shattered shop glass and a smouldering barricade on a wet city street at night, with blue police lights
Shattered shop glass and a smouldering barricade on a wet city street at night, with blue police lights
In this article

    As of about 6:45 AM IST, Monday 2 November 2026. Claims that could not be independently verified are flagged as such.

    Youth-led protests against the rising cost of living and a possible return of military conscription drew tens of thousands of people onto the streets of more than 30 German cities on Saturday 31 October. The marches organised by the "Gen Z regelt" ("Gen Z has got this") initiative were largely peaceful during the day, but after dark rioting, looting and attacks on police broke out in several cities, most seriously in Frankfurt and Cologne.

    The unrest follows weeks of similar youth and cost-of-living protests elsewhere in Europe, including in France, where Paris imposed protest bans and curfews after riots in October.

    What the protesters want

    According to public broadcaster tagesschau, the initiative's demands include more money for schools, addiction services and psychotherapy, action on living costs, social justice and more climate protection. It opposes the introduction of compulsory military service and an expansion of state surveillance. Rallies were planned in 34 cities, including Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich.

    Turnout fell short of the organisers' expectations. A spokesperson for the group said more than 100,000 people took part; AFP reported the group's estimate as about 120,000, compared with the at least 182,000 it had expected. Tagesschau reporters said attendance in many cities was roughly half of what had been announced.

    Frankfurt: looting on the Zeil

    About 8,000 people marched in Frankfurt, according to police (organisers said about 9,000). Police said the demonstration was dissolved at around 6:20 PM local time after repeated attacks on officers. Rioters then smashed shop windows and looted stores on the Zeil, the city's main shopping street, and threw stones, fireworks and Molotov cocktails at emergency workers. A gun shop was attacked; police said they arrested suspects and seized two weapons. The Zeil was sealed off, and the situation calmed only in the early hours of Sunday.

    At a press conference on Sunday, police and the Hesse interior ministry gave a first tally for Frankfurt: 54 arrests, about 100 injured officers (one seriously, who lost teeth after being hit by a stone), five looted shops, 87 criminal complaints and more than 1,000 orders to leave the area. Those arrested were aged between 13 and 29, according to ZDF. Up to 1,300 officers were deployed at the peak.

    Hesse Interior Minister Roman Poseck initially said about 100 "clearly identified left-wing extremists" had infiltrated the protest. On Sunday he spoke of 1,000 to 1,500 violent troublemakers, whom he described as coming "predominantly from a migrant milieu". Frankfurt Mayor Mike Josef responded that many of the emergency workers who protected the city and were attacked also have a migration background. HorizonDesk has not independently verified the composition of the groups involved.

    Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin

    • Cologne: police ended a rally at around 4 PM after some participants masked their faces and set off fireworks, then used water cannon against groups attacking officers. A Cologne police spokesperson told tagesschau the later incidents were linked more to Halloween than to the protests.
    • Hamburg: rioters built burning barricades and threw stones, bottles and fireworks at police. Police said about 120 people were temporarily detained; final figures were still pending, according to Euronews.
    • Berlin: a march police put at about 3,500 people moved from Rosenthaler Platz towards Prenzlauer Berg. Berlin police said 27 officers suffered minor injuries and almost 60 people were arrested.

    Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt blamed "left-wing groups and troublemakers from a migrant background" and called for harsh penalties.

    Organisers distance themselves

    "Gen Z regelt" said it rejected "any form of violence" and that it had no influence over what happened after the rallies ended. "Violence was and is never part of our movement," it said in a statement. The group plans to continue: a spokesperson told dpa it wants to join Europe-wide youth protests on 20 November. A further date of 14 November briefly appeared on the group's website on Sunday before being removed, tagesschau reported, so the next national date is not yet confirmed.

    What to watch

    • Final arrest and injury figures from Hamburg, Cologne and Berlin police.
    • Political pressure in Berlin over the conscription debate and policing of future protests.
    • Whether the 20 November European youth strike day draws larger, or more violent, crowds.

    Related reading on HorizonDesk

    Sources

    GermanyCost of livingprotestsEuropeGen Z ProtestsFrankfurtConscriptionPublic Safety
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    Written by Raj

    Founder & Editor

    I write HorizonDesk: practical, no-hype articles on technology, money, business and the vehicles we drive. Everything here is something I’ve researched, tested or wanted explained clearly myself.

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