With tensions running high over assaults against women on New Year's Eve, police said that a mob yesterday attacked six Pakistanis, two of whom had to be hospitalised
Berlin: A group of Pakistanis and a Syrian were attacked on Sunday in Cologne amid tensions over New Year’s Eve assaults in the city that have been blamed largely on foreigners. Six Pakistani nationals were attacked by around 20 people and two of them were briefly admitted to a hospital. A Syrian man was attacked by five people. He was injured but didn’t need treatment.
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Police said they had received tips about groups of people who would “seek provocation,” but were still investigating whether the subsequent attacks were racially motivated and whether there was any link to the assaults.
Those assaults have stoked tensions over Germany’s open-door policy to refugees and prompted politicians to call for tougher laws against migrants who commit crimes.
“As abominable as the crimes in Cologne and other cities were, one thing remains clear: there is no justification for blanket agitation against foreigners,” Justice Minister Heiko Maas said.
516 The number of criminal complaints filed in connection to the New Year’s attacks, including two cases of rape