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Cologne to Deploy 1,500 Officers for NYE

Cologne to Deploy 1,500 Officers for NYE
folder_openEurope... access_time7 years ago
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Local Editor

German police will deploy 1,500 officers to the streets of Cologne on New Year's Eve and implement a number of increased security plans, aiming to prevent a repeat of the wave of assaults that were reported on the holiday last year.

Cologne to Deploy 1,500 Officers for NYE

In addition to federal police officers and city security officials, trained specialists will be available to help women and girls in case of annoyance or any other attempt of abuse, Deutsche Welle reported.

Officers will wear reflective vests to make themselves highly visible, police chief Jürgen Mathies said during a presentation of the city's New Year's Eve security plan on Monday.

The city will also limit access to the immediate area around the city's cathedral, the site of many of last year's alleged assaults, which on that day were reported in their hundreds.

The church, the adjacent square, and nearby buildings will be illuminated in bright colors.

Bags will be searched, and fireworks will be strictly prohibited in the cordoned off area.

Bridges crossing the Rhine will be blocked off at certain times to avoid "unclear situations."

CCTV cameras will film the area in front of the main train station, also a scene of last year's assaults. The area will also be more brightly lit than usual.

The new safety provisions are being seen as a huge improvement from last year, when just 140 officers were deployed to the streets of Cologne on New Year's Eve, a night which resulted in almost 1,200 criminal complaints being made to police - around 500 of which were related to physical assault.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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