Several hundred people protest in Kassel against the arms industry. After riots, two demonstrators are arrested.
Kassel (dpa/lhe) – Around 40 demonstrators blocked the road in front of the Krauss-Maffei Wegmann armaments company in Kassel on Friday morning. According to the police, around 200 people protested with posters against the armaments industry during the action of the anti-militarist alliance “Rheinmetall Disarming”.
There were riots. According to the police, emergency services were thrown at construction site objects. The police used pepper spray and batons against the demonstrators. In addition, some demonstrators tried to climb over a company gate and get through a police barrier. Eight emergency services were slightly injured, and the police were not aware of any injured participants in the protest.
Two demonstrators were provisionally arrested. A spokesman for the demonstrators said the entrances to the production site had been blocked to prevent the shift from starting.
The demonstrators then marched through the city center, among other places. In addition, around 300 people protested peacefully against rearmament and war in the morning at an industrial park in Kassel, where Rheinmetall is also based. The “Rheinmetall Disarm” alliance is directed against arms deliveries from Rheinmetall and other armaments companies, also in connection with the war in Ukraine.
The nationwide alliance had under the slogan “Disarming Kassel is (not) an art!” called for a protest camp and actions against war, rearmament and isolation. The multi-day protest is planned until Sunday.
