Berlin, October 31st, 2026 (The Berlin Spectator) – When the first of two big demonstrations started in Berlin this afternoon, thousands of young Berliners and just as many older protesters assembled behind Brandenburg Gate. Speakers stressed the event needed to be peaceful even though some people would probably want to escalate the situation.
A male student told the participants to sit down on the street in case of a violence flareup. That way, it could be stopped. Then, three female organizers hit the makeshift stage on the back of a small truck. They had a long list of demands, including a bigger budget for education instead of a high defense spending. They also opposed the compulsory military service the political Berlin is discussing.
One of the young women also made the usual genocide accusation against Israel. Nobody on the stage said anything about the Palestinian terror which continues to threaten both Israel and Jews in other countries, including in Germany. In October of 2025, several suspected Hamas terrorists were arrested in Berlin. Some groups of protesters carried Palestinian flags at today’s event at Brandenburg Gate.
In the meantime, dozens of young demonstrators assembled behind a banner of a socialist organization. It said they wanted to shoot away billionaires using missiles.
Too Crowded
The Berlin Police Department had help from the Federal Police. Hundreds of officers protected the rally at Brandenburg Gate. They used anti-terror barriers and closed some exits of the train station located right there when it became too crowded, for safety reasons.
On the eastern side of Brandenburg Gate, communists with Cuban flags protested against the U.S. pressure on the Havana regime. So-called “pro-Palestinian” demonstrators assembled next to them before they joined the Gen Z protest. According to the police, 5,000 people participated. The organizers said there had been 11,000.
This demonstration was peaceful, but the next one wasn’t. At another protest registered as a “Gen Z” event, extremist left-wingers and groups hostile to Israel showed up. This one started at Rosenthaler Platz, a square that is less than two miles away from the Gate. Here, some protesters were not peaceful at all. Accortding to a police report, some lit forbidden firecrackers and threw them at the police, which is why officers in riot gear prevented the participants from moving ahead temporarily. In this case, they had to protect the city and themselves.
Under Control
Until 6:30 CET, the police had this protest under control. In the past days, politicians had voiced worries about possible lootings and violence in the streets of Berlin because of the riots in France. Owners of shops on Kurfürstendamm boulevard had even barricaded their display windows with wooden boards before today’s protests commenced.
At a similar demonstration in Hamburg, left-wing extremists attacked police officers as well, according to local media. In Cologne, at yet another protest of this kind, the police reportedly used a water gun mounted on a truck against participants who threw firecrackers at them.
