Overview
- The Gießen public prosecutor is assessing several criminal complaints from the protest weekend, including two alleging bodily harm in office by police officers.
- Officials stressed the early stage of the review, citing the need to analyze extensive video material and identify and question witnesses before drawing conclusions.
- Hesse’s state government reported more than 50 injured police officers during clashes, while most demonstrations were described by authorities as largely peaceful.
- Police estimated around 25,000 participants at the protests, whereas the Widersetzen alliance claimed more than 50,000 people took part.
- AFP and dpa confirmed that viral images comparing protesters to Nazis were misattributed, identifying the color photo as Berlin in 2013 and the black‑and‑white image as Northeim in 1933, unrelated to the Gießen events tied to the AfD’s new youth group led by Jean‑Pascal Hohm.