France and Germany have ramped up security ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations following warnings that the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas had raised the risk of terror attacks.
Police in the German city of Cologne are bolstering their forces following a report that Islamist groups may be planning an attack on the city’s famous cathedral on New Year’s Eve.
Officer Martin Lotz said at a press conference on thet officers carrying submachine guns and wearing protective vests would be deployed in the city.
The city’s gothic cathedral announced it will only open for church services until further notice “due to the current security situation,” according to a statement it posted on social media.
Meanwhile, in Berlin, police are attempting to raise awareness of the dangers of fireworks through social media channels.
“Don’t attack us. Don’t shoot at us with fireworks and rockets. Avoid penalties or several years in jail,” Berlin police warned in a video released on X, formerly known as Twitter, in the lead up to New Year’s Eve.
Concerns are heightened after last year’s New Year’s Eve celebrations in Berlin turned into violent riots. Several were injured, including police officers and firefighters who said fireworks were deliberately aimed at them. The pyrotechnics also sparked street fires.
According to German newspaper Die Zeit, Berlin’s governing mayor, Kai Wegner, said that police in the capital are better equipped this year than last year, and will use full force “if necessary.”
Meanwhile France will deploy 90,000 officers as the country faces “very high terrorist threat,” French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said Friday.
“I have asked for a very strong mobilisation of our police and gendarmes in a context of very high terrorist threat due to, of course, what is happening in Israel and Palestine,” Darmanin told journalists.
The number of police mobilized is around the same as that for the New Year’s Eve last year, according to data from the French Interior Ministry. Apart from terrorist threats, France traditionally sees a rise in minor offences, especially burning cars, as people celebrate the arrival of the New Year
