Berlin introduces sharp knife ban in local transport - security is going on!
Berlin introduces sharp knife ban in local transport - security is going on!
In Berlin, a comprehensive ban for knives and other weapons is being introduced throughout public transport this month. This was announced in the Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) in the RBB24 evening show. The ban includes underground and S-Bahn, regional trains, trams, buses, ferries as well as platforms and train stations. Spranger emphasizes that this ban should not only increase the security and feeling of security of the passengers, but also serves as a signal to the urban society that the rule of law acts actively against knife attacks. Last year, 3,412 knife attacks were registered in Berlin, which corresponds to a worrying average of almost ten incidents per day.
So far, only temporary prohibition zones have existed in certain places with higher crime. In the course of an intensive discussion in the black and red Senate, which was intensified after a fatal incident in April, a permanent regulation for all local transport is now being created. Since February there have been three such permanent knife ban zones in Berlin, which were created in Leopoldplatz (Wedding), Görlitzer Park and Kottbusser Tor (Kreuzberg). In these zones, the police are authorized to carry out controls without concrete suspicions.The effect of knife ban zones in Germany
Similar prohibition zones have been set up in several cities in Baden-Württemberg in recent years, including Stuttgart, Mannheim, Heilbronn, Heidelberg and Ulm. The state had created legal options in October 2022 to support this approach. Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (CDU) also plans a knife ban on buses and lanes, which even includes blurred knives such as buttermeal and Swiss pocket knife. From the end of October 2024, a general ban for managing knives at public events should apply.However, there is enough skepticism with regard to the effectiveness of these zones. A survey in Baden-Württemberg has shown that 62% of the respondents do not believe that betting zones can prevent sustainable attacks. Despite the introduction of the prohibition zones, the knife attacks in public space in 2024 rose by 3.2% to around 1,300 cases, with 40% of the attacks threats and 33% dangerous bodily harm. The number of suspects in knife attacks rose by 7.3% in the same year to around 1,240.
Security situation in cities
in Stuttgart, for example, a decline in serious crimes against life with knives can be observed after the introduction of the prohibition zone in February 2023. 180 banned knives were secured there for two years, but there were no detailed statistics on the number of controlled people. The German Police Union generally rates the knife prohibition zones positively, but at the same time demands an increased control density for deterrent.
is important to observe the development in the coming months. The implementation of the new ban in Berlin could possibly serve as a model for other cities, while the success of the existing zones in Baden-Württemberg remains controversial. It remains to be seen how the security situation will actually change.
For further information on this topic, read the reports on rbb24, Staatsanzeiger and Zeit .
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| Ort | Berlin, Deutschland |
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