Violent protests in Germany are the work of leftists and migrants, the country’s interior minister has said. Demonstrations began peacefully on Saturday afternoon but turned violent in the evening as rioters smashed windows and looted shops in Frankfurt, where the police responded with water cannons.

Violence also erupted in Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg, where demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails, bottles and fireworks at police officers. Large-scale arrests were made in more than eight cities.

Alexander Dobrindt, the interior minister and a member of the ruling conservative Christian Social Union, accused “troublemakers from the immigrant community” of acting alongside Left-wing extremists and other far-Left groups. Organisers said 160,000 people took part across the country.

The Gen-Z Rules group insisted that its goals could only be reached peacefully, telling demonstrators that violence had no place at the demonstrations.

A man wearing a clown mask uses a street sign to smash a shop window in Frankfurt However, some participants believe that strong action is necessary to catch the attention of authorities.

Emil Weißkohl, 19, a demonstrator, told The Telegraph: “Our protests are laughable in comparison to France.

“We need to be more radical. No one talks about our problems; everything is too expensive, and schools aren’t ready for AI.”The protests aimed to bring attention to a wide range of issues affecting young people in Germany, including dissatisfaction with Friedrich Merz, the centre-Right Chancellor, the cost of living and military service.

Philipp Gröschel, 27, a demonstrator in Berlin, said: “War only serves the rich, so funding should go into education and aid instead.

“I don’t think that preparing for war will prevent it from happening.”A person dressed in a Batman costume stands in front of a burning dumpster This is a key issue of debate in Germany, since the country started to enact selective military recruitment in January 2026. This requires men of fighting age (17 to 45) to undergo physical fitness tests, while discussions over introducing mandatory conscription are ongoing.

Earlier this year, young men had to seek permission to leave Germany for periods exceeding three months, before this regulation was suspended again.

Although the ongoing protests are led by members of Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012), Germans of all ages turned out to show their support, often echoing the anti-war sentiment.

Heinz Eckel, 74, said: “We have more urgent problems than war. It’s not the time to talk about fighting when the infrastructure’s rotted.”The issue is contentious, as European countries move to rearm in light of growing security threats from Russia.

Police detain a protester on the floor A man with a bloodied face is also detained Meanwhile, Mr Merz’s approval ratings remain at a record low.

“He looks away from young people’s problems in healthcare and education and only thinks of his own interests,” Malena Walge, 23, said.

Many slogans and signs targeted Germany’s Christian Democratic Union leader, calling for his resignation. His party’s poll ratings are down compared with the hard-Right Alternative for Germany party, after it suffered catastrophic losses in recent local elections around the country.

Protests are expected to continue into November, and Gen Z Rules is planning a week of blockades at schools and universities across Germany.

This aligns with the wave of youth-led protests seen in France, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Albania, which started last month.

Students in France are calling for a renewed school blockade on Monday when they return from the midterm break.

Dozens of masked people dressed in black used hammers to pry up paving stones and hurl them at police in Paris on Saturday. An attempted murder investigation is under way following a petrol bomb attack on Sunday.

Laurent Nunez, the interior minister, described the Molotov cocktail attack that injured an officer as attempted murder.