May Day: Leftists Burn 16 Amazon Trucks, Berlin Police Declare Riots 'Mostly Trouble-Free'

A large group of Amazon delivery vans were totally destroyed during a night of “traditional” left-wing protests in Berlin, which is believed to possibly have been an act of arson, despite the conflagration police said was “mostly trouble-free”.

While May First is now known worldwide for left-wing protests, in Germany things tend to get started the night before on Walpurgisnacht, an old religious festival for the 8th-century Anglo-Saxon missionary Saint Walpurga since becoming synonymous with leftist violence. Berlin Police deployed 3,100 officers overnight in Berlin and despite some clashes and incidents of thrown eggs and stones, Die Welt notes the force said the five protests city-wide were “mostly trouble-free”.

Yet the night was not totally uneventful, and in Berlin, a group of 16 Amazon delivery vans were torched, and totally destroyed. Newspaper Bild reports the initial police investigation indicates it was an act of arson, and that “Witnesses claim to have seen several masked perpetrators at the Amazon vans.”

01 May 2024, Berlin: Several vehicles are burnt out in Thyssenstraße in the Reinickendorf district. In Berlin, numerous delivery vans belonging to a large mail order company were on fire early on Wednesday morning. Photo: Jörg Carstensen/dpa (Photo by Jörg Carstensen/picture alliance via Getty Images)

A house is decorated with an antifascist logo in Berlin during the queer-feminist demonstration for trans, inter, agender, non-binary, lesbians and women only named Take Back the Night” in the “Walpurgis Night” on April 30, 2024. (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP) (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Demonstrators hold a banner reading ‘no justice on stolen land’ and ‘queers for Palestine’ in Berlin during the queer-feminist demonstration for trans, inter, agender, non-binary, lesbians and women only named Take Back the Night” in the “Walpurgis Night” on April 30, 2024. (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP) (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Such fire attacks against an obvious symbol of the high-tech Western capitalist society would not be in any way unusual for the European hard left. As long reported, beyond attacks on Amazon itself, internet and telephone cables, railway signalling equipment, and power supply infrastructure are frequently targeted by the hard left.

Protests naturally carried on into May Day, which — as previously noted — is another ancient European holiday which has been co-opted by Leftists for their own purposes, in this case, “following an 1889 meeting of the Marxist International Socialist Congress in Paris”. The day of left-wing protest and violence has been going so long it too is now said to be a German “tradition“.

In addition to the five protests registered overnight, a further 20 are taking place on Wednesday, leading to a deployment of over 5,000 police officers in the German capital, and including other emergency services there are 6,200 deployed in all, 2,400 from other cities.

01 May 2024, Berlin: Participants in the “Revolutionary May Day Demonstration” set off pyrotechnics. The demonstration, called for by left-wing and far-left groups, is to go through Kreuzberg and Neukölln. Photo: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa (Photo by Sebastian Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Demonstrators hold pictures of (L-R) Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin as they take part in a parade organised by the German Trade Union Confederation (Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund, DGB) on May Day, or Labour Day, on May 1, 2024 in Berlin. (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP) (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Demonstrators hold flags as they take part in a parade organised by the German Trade Union Confederation (Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund, DGB) on May Day, or Labour Day, on May 1, 2024 in Berlin. (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP) (Photo by JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images)

01 May 2024, Berlin: Kai Wegner (CDU, l), Governing Mayor of Berlin, and Barbara Slowik, Chief of Police in Berlin, talk during a visit to the fire station in Wilmsstraße in the Kreuzberg district. The visit took place on the fringes of celebrations, demonstrations and rallies to mark Labor Day. Photo: Christoph Soeder/dpa (Photo by Christoph Soeder/picture alliance via Getty Images)

It was reported that in advance of the demonstrations beginning today, local residents reported to Berlin police that strategically placed piles of stones and roofing tiles were spotted along the planned route of some marches. The city’s conservative mayor said he would “not tolerate” criminals throwing stones at police officers. He said: “When I hear there are deposits of stones and roof tiles in this city, then this is not a trivial offence. This is an act with a high probability of causing serious injury, or worse”.

A large protest over Gaza is expected on Wednesday evening and is due to pass through Berlin’s multicultural, heavily left-leaning Neukölln district, which according to the Berliner Morgenpost police said had been chosen “to attract as many pro-Palestinian demonstrators as possible”. The paper notes the evening protest had traditionally attracted violence in the past.

Before the protest started, officers read out the protest conditions, which stated that “any statements that incite hatred, impair human dignity or are anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and glorify violence or terror” would not be prohibited.

01 May 2024, Berlin: Participants in the “Revolutionary May Day Demonstration” carry flags. The demonstration, called for by left-wing and far-left groups, is to go through Kreuzberg and Neukölln. Photo: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa (Photo by Sebastian Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images)

01 May 2024, Berlin: Police forces accompany the colorful left-wing satire demonstration “Razzia im Grunewald – Kapitalverbrechen aufklären”. The participants march from Johannaplatz to Grunewald station. Photo: Paul Zinken/dpa (Photo by Paul Zinken/picture alliance via Getty Images)

May Day: Leftists Burn 16 Amazon Trucks, Berlin Police Declare Riots ‘Mostly Trouble-Free’

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