On Saturday, March 3rd, by 20.00 (MEZ) the occupied building squatted on Deutz-Mülheim Street was surrounded by a giant police force with martial equipment. Nearly 20 squatters were under siege by approximately 100 armed cops, aided from earlier in the evening by police helicopter, 25 police buses, a fire brigade unit, which provided lights for the operation, etc. Given the enormous pressure and continuous threats of violence, the squatters finally stepped out of the house all together and were detained, so the place was evicted and the entire area was sealed. All personal details were recorded; all detainees were searched at the police station (including the minors, who were forced to strip naked, without their parents being informed about the arrests). The detainees were locked up in separate cells, but all of them refused to give fingerprints. The last squatters were released at about 04.00 in the morning, when people in solidarity were finally able to take all imprisoned activists in their arms.
On the same day (3/3) in Münster a Nazi rally took place. Although specific circumstances are yet unverified, an antifascist counter-protester from Cologne was beaten savagely by cops. The comrade was attacked by the State’s forces during a rather calm situation at the time, and even when he lay on the ground, the murderers hit him several times on the head with their elbows and boots (with steel inside). Several of his teeth lay on the street while his face was covered in blood. He was reportedly hospitalized in intensive care unit, being unconscious and in life-threatening condition for several hours.
After this sequence of events, a demo against repression (beatings at demonstrations, evictions, incarcerations, nuclear power, discrimination against immigrants, etc.) has been called for March 5th, at 19.00 in Rudolfplatz, Cologne. Join the anti-repression protest on Monday!