Overview
- Berlin prosecutors report more than 500 penalty orders or indictments from the past two New Year’s periods, with roughly 900 investigations discontinued and over 200 cases still open.
- Police data for 2024/25 show 2,909 total offenses in Berlin, with marked increases in property damage and dangerous or severe bodily injury, while attacks on emergency personnel declined.
- The Federal Police recently seized illegal F3/F4 pyrotechnics and thousands of bird‑scarer cartridges near Küstrin‑Kietz, opening probes under explosives and weapons laws.
- Hamburg will again bar fireworks around the Binnenalster and the Rathausmarkt from December 31 at 18:00 to January 1 at 01:00, permitting only F1 items such as sparklers.
- Munich introduced a new 150‑meter no‑fireworks zone around Tierpark Hellabrunn as the police union urges an outright ban and the interior minister signals openness to updating explosives rules.