FRANKFURT: Berlin police on Sunday said they arrested 57 people during a pro-Palestinian demonstration on the fringes of the city’s yearly Pride march a day earlier, adding that 17 police officers sustained injuries.

According to police, about 10,000 demonstrators participated in the rally on Saturday in support of Palestinians, but authorities moved in to disperse the crowd as organisers struggled to restore order.

The arrests were related to public order disturbances, including resisting police and throwing bottles or physical altercation, but also the use of anti-Semitic slogans as well as “symbols of anti-constitutional and terrorist organisations”, police said on social media.

The “Internationalist Queer Pride for Libe­ration” movement, which on its website says there is “no queer liberation without anti-imperialist, anti-colonial, and anti-Zionist struggle”, called the rally.

The pro-Palestinian demonstration took place as Berlin’s annual Pride parade was being held in another city district, where 64 arrests were also made, for insults, assault and also the alleged use of symbols deemed linked to “terrorist organisations”.

Another demonstration, this one by far-right militants opposed to the Pride march, also took place, with police saying that 20 people there were arrested.

Pro-Palestinian protests have proliferated in Germany and elsewhere in Europe. The demonstrations reflect heightened concerns as the Gaza conflict grinds on, with Israel pursuing a devastating military operation.

Germany, seeking to atone for the Holocaust, has long been one of Israel’s most steadfast supporters.

But as the civilian toll and plight in Gaza has risen, it has recently sharpened its criticism of its ally.

Germany recently said it regards the recognition of a Palestinian state as “one of the final steps on the path to achieving a two-state solution”.

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2025