May 1 in Berlin: largely peaceful until the evening

Around 10,000 people marched through Berlin 's Neukölln and Kreuzberg districts during the traditional "Revolutionary May Day Demonstration." According to police, there were no major incidents. Individual demonstrators threw fireworks at police officers, and some participants were arrested. Pro-Palestinian chants were heard during the demonstration, and Bengal lights and smoke bombs were seen. Banners read, among other things, "Fight fascism," "Smash repression," "Against racism and displacement," and "War on war." Some participants were masked, including many demonstrators in the so-called black bloc at the rear of the march.

Left-wing and left-wing extremist groups had called for the demonstration, which had frequently resulted in riots in previous years. The main organizers were pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel initiatives. Before the march began, a masked person read a greeting from the imprisoned former RAF terrorist Daniela Klette, who had been arrested in Kreuzberg the previous year after years of living underground. In her message, she railed against capitalism, which contains "many abysmal aspects." As examples of her thesis, she cited human rights violations and the "genocide of the Palestinian population" by Israel. Klette also complained about militarization and war training in Germany . Her lawyer had confirmed before May 1st that a greeting from her would be read out.

In total, tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Berlin on May 1st in several dozen demonstrations. According to the organizers, 11,000 people took part in a demonstration organized by the German Trade Union Confederation at the Red City Hall; the police estimated the number of participants to be around 6,500. They demanded higher wages, better working conditions, the preservation of jobs, and more social security. Under the slogan "Milei, Musk, and Merz to Mars," numerous people demonstrated in the Grunewald district for more social justice and redistribution from the top down. The police estimated the number of participants at 1,800; the organizers estimated the number at several thousand. According to both sides, the colorful May Day event went off without a hitch.