Latest news with #AndreasRosskopf
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
German police union wants AI support after Hamburg knife attack
The head of Germany's GdP police union has called for technical support using artificial intelligence (AI) for law-enforcers following Friday's knife attack that left 18 people injured at Hamburg Central Station. "Unfortunately, such attacks can never be prevented 100%," said union chief Andreas Rosskopf, according to the Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper. However, there is now an urgent need for the federal police to be able to carry out comprehensive checks at railway stations, Rosskopf stressed. He advocated using AI-supported camera technology "that also includes behaviour recognition so that such behavioural anomalies can be detected in advance." Early on Friday evening, 18 people were injured in a knife attack on a crowded station platform, four of them critically. Police arrested a 39-year-old woman at the scene who is to be brought before a magistrate on Saturday.
Russia Today
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Germany's border crackdown can only last ‘a few more weeks'
Germany's new border crackdown can only be sustained for 'a few more weeks,' the country's police union has warned, citing mounting pressure on officers tasked with enforcing the policy. The warning comes two weeks after the government introduced stricter border controls to curb the number of asylum seekers entering the country. 'We can only manage this because duty rosters have been adjusted, training for the units is currently on hold, and the reduction of overtime has been halted,' Andreas Rosskopf, chairman of the Federal Police and Customs division of the German Police Union, said. He warned that the controls can only be sustained 'for a few more weeks.' The measures represent a major shift in Germany's migration stance and fulfill a key campaign promise of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who vowed to tighten the immigration laws. The May 7 order from Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt bans asylum applications at all land borders, reversing former Chancellor Angela Merkel's 2015 open-border policy. Exceptions are made for children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable groups. Up to 3,000 officers are being added to the 11,000 already stationed at Germany's borders. The 2015 policy defined Germany's approach to refugees, while also drawing fierce political backlash, with critics calling it 'disastrous.' A week after the measures were announced, Dobrindt claimed that the number of rejections increased by almost a half. However, according to Der Spiegel, the number of asylum applications remained largely stable in the week after May 7. As the EU's largest economy, Germany has been the most popular destination for asylum seekers. According to official statistics, foreigners currently make up 17% of the country's population. Migration remains a polarizing issue, with local authorities often warning that the number of asylum seekers is straining their budgets. The right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which is known for its strong anti-immigration stance, was designated a 'confirmed extremist entity' earlier this month by the domestic intelligence agency (BfV), which said its activities could threaten Germany's democratic order. The designation was later suspended after legal appeals and public outcry.
DW
19-05-2025
- Politics
- DW
Germany updates: Police say extra border checks unustainable – DW – 05/19/2025
The German Police Union (GdP) is warning that intensified border checks and asylum rejections cannot go on much longer amid staff shortages and suspended training. GdP chief Andreas Rosskopf said the measures rely on adjusted rosters, canceled leave, and paused training. Over 1,000 riot police are currently deployed at the borders after Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt recently tightened controls, with turnbacks up by nearly a half. Meanwhile, an Iraqi couple are on trial in Germany accused of enslaving and abusing two Yazidi girls. Here's a roundup of top news stories from Germany on Monday, May 19.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
German police union calls for weapons ban on all public transport
A major German police union has called for a countrywide ban on the carrying of weapons in public transport and related facilities, including all railway stations. Andreas Rosskopf, head of the GdP union's federal police section, complained that there was currently a patchwork of regulations across the country's 16 federal states. A national ban is already in place on long-distance trains. "People often don't know themselves whether there is a banned zone at a particular station or not," Rosskopf told dpa. Berlin's state government recently backed a ban on firearms and knives in all the capital's commuter transport. A complete ban is in place in certain states, while others are considering taking similar measures. The large southern state of Bavaria has taken a contrary position, calling for the decision to be left to regions and local authorities. The GdP is calling for agreement on a common policy by the interior ministers of all the states, who regularly meet along with their federal counterparts.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
German police union: Thousands more officers needed to patrol borders
Plans from Germany's conservative opposition leader to bring back permanent controls along the country's borders would require hiring thousands of additional police officers, the leader of the German Police Union (GdP) said on Monday. Friedrich Merz, the head of the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU), included the return of permanent border checks in a legislative package aimed at cracking down on migration. All of Germany's neighbours are members of the visa-free Schengen Area, and have not had regular border controls on any land borders for several years as a result of the Schengen agreement. "We would certainly need 8,000 to 10,000 additional officers to comprehensively control the border," Andreas Rosskopf, head of the GdP federal police, told the Rheinische Post newspaper. He said about 1,000 riot police are already being regularly deployed as support to the regular force at the borders, and a broader staffing reform is "absolutely essential." Rosskopft said that Germany also lacked modern technology such as surveillance drones and vehicle licence plate scanners to properly aid officers in controlling the borders.
