Today in Germany: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
Flooding and travel disruption as Storm Zoltan tears through the country, fears over violence on New Year's Eve and more news from around Germany on Friday.
Storm Zoltan causes flooding and destruction across Germany
Northern Germany was hit by ferocious winds and heavy flooding on Thursday as Storm Zoltan struck reached the country's coastline, leaving numerous train and ferry services unable to run on Friday.
In Hamburg, the famous Fish Market and many parts of the city centre were flooded after the Elbe reached a water level of 3 metres above average.
Emergency services were called out to around 80 incidents throughout the night. In the district of Altona, a man had to be rescued from his car after water started leaking in, preventing him from being able to open the door.
Several Christmas markets across northern Germany were also forced to close amid the gale-force winds and torrential downpour.
The storm also wreaked havoc in North Rhine-Westphalia, causing damage to cars and house roofs. In one district of Cologne, an entire solar panel installation was ripped off a roof.
On Friday, Deutsche Bahn expect continued disruption as flooding continues in the northern regions and the storm moves south across the country.
Severe weather warnings were still in place on Friday along the Baltic Coast, in parts of North-Rhine Westphalia and in the southern states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
READ ALSO: Could Germany see a white Christmas this year?
Faeser voices fears over violence on New Year's Eve
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has warned that violent riots could occur in several cities on New Year's Eve.
"I'm worried that New Year's Eve could once again be a day on which we have to experience blind rage and senseless violence in some cities, for example against police officers or rescue workers," the SPD politician told RND on Thursday.
At the same time, she expressed concern that the riots could be mixed with riots by radicalised Palestinians and people with Arabic roots.
People let off fireworks in the street in Leipzig on New Year's Eve 2022. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Sebastian Willnow
There is now a general increase in violence on days like New Year's Eve, Faeser said. "And of course we have to keep a very close eye on the danger of this mixing with radicalisation, which we are now seeing in view of the Middle East conflict."
READ ALSO: Do Germans want a complete ban on New Year's Eve fireworks?
Police around Germany are already preparing for similar scenes to the ones seen in 2022, when groups of young men fired rockets in city centres and launched firecrackers at emergency workers.
In Berlin, where much of the violence took place, there will be many more police on the streets than there were a year ago.
Scorsese to pick up honorary gong at Berlin film fest
US director Martin Scorsese will collect a lifetime achievement award at next year's Berlinale film festival for his contributions to global cinema, organisers said Thursday.
The 74th annual event, Europe's first major cinema showcase of the year, said Scorsese, as "one of the most influential filmmakers in the world of cinema", would be handed the Honorary Golden Bear prize at a gala ceremony in the German capital on February 20th.
"For anyone who considers cinema as the art of shaping a story in such a way that is both completely personal and universal, Martin Scorsese is an unmatched role model," festival chiefs Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian said in a statement.
"His films have accompanied our history as spectators and human beings, his characters have lived and grown within us, his view of history and mankind has helped us to understand and question who we are and where we come from."
Beyond his own award-winning films such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and The Wolf of Wall Street, the festival praised Scorsese's efforts to restore and distribute classic motion pictures.
This year the festival awarded fellow Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg its Honorary Golden Bear.
The Berlinale, running February 15-25th, ranks along with Cannes and Venice among Europe's top film festivals.
Germany to miss house-building targets in 2024
For the second and third year in a row, the government predicts it will fall significantly short of its house-building goals.
According to Housing Minister Klara Geywitz (SPD), 265,000 apartments are likely to be completed in Germany in the coming year. That's according to a new forecast by the German Institute for Economic Research.
In its coalition pact agreed back in November 2021, the traffic-light coalition of the SPD, Greens and FDP had set itself the target of building 400,000 apartments a year in the fight against rising rents.
With Germany hit by an unforeseeable recession, however, it has become impossible to build 100,000 more apartments, Geywitz said. "But I am pleased that we have stable completion figures," she said.
A construction worker works on a construction site of a newly built apartment building in the south-east of Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH | Monika Skolimowska
Alongside the country's flagging economy, the real estate sector is also struggling with higher interest rates, which are making it more expensive to finance projects. In addition, the cost of construction and materials has risen sharply. As a result, many projects are being postponed or canceled, particularly in residential construction.
READ ALSO: What will happen to the German property market in 2024?
However, Geywitz did say the outlook was better than had been predicted at the start of the year: she expects 270,000 new apartments to be built by the end of 2023 and believes the outlook on the housing market will brighten at the "end of 2024, beginning of 2025".
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Storm Zoltan causes flooding and destruction across Germany
Northern Germany was hit by ferocious winds and heavy flooding on Thursday as Storm Zoltan struck reached the country's coastline, leaving numerous train and ferry services unable to run on Friday.
In Hamburg, the famous Fish Market and many parts of the city centre were flooded after the Elbe reached a water level of 3 metres above average.
Emergency services were called out to around 80 incidents throughout the night. In the district of Altona, a man had to be rescued from his car after water started leaking in, preventing him from being able to open the door.
Several Christmas markets across northern Germany were also forced to close amid the gale-force winds and torrential downpour.
The storm also wreaked havoc in North Rhine-Westphalia, causing damage to cars and house roofs. In one district of Cologne, an entire solar panel installation was ripped off a roof.
On Friday, Deutsche Bahn expect continued disruption as flooding continues in the northern regions and the storm moves south across the country.
Severe weather warnings were still in place on Friday along the Baltic Coast, in parts of North-Rhine Westphalia and in the southern states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
READ ALSO: Could Germany see a white Christmas this year?
Faeser voices fears over violence on New Year's Eve
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has warned that violent riots could occur in several cities on New Year's Eve.
"I'm worried that New Year's Eve could once again be a day on which we have to experience blind rage and senseless violence in some cities, for example against police officers or rescue workers," the SPD politician told RND on Thursday.
At the same time, she expressed concern that the riots could be mixed with riots by radicalised Palestinians and people with Arabic roots.
There is now a general increase in violence on days like New Year's Eve, Faeser said. "And of course we have to keep a very close eye on the danger of this mixing with radicalisation, which we are now seeing in view of the Middle East conflict."
READ ALSO: Do Germans want a complete ban on New Year's Eve fireworks?
Police around Germany are already preparing for similar scenes to the ones seen in 2022, when groups of young men fired rockets in city centres and launched firecrackers at emergency workers.
In Berlin, where much of the violence took place, there will be many more police on the streets than there were a year ago.
Scorsese to pick up honorary gong at Berlin film fest
US director Martin Scorsese will collect a lifetime achievement award at next year's Berlinale film festival for his contributions to global cinema, organisers said Thursday.
The 74th annual event, Europe's first major cinema showcase of the year, said Scorsese, as "one of the most influential filmmakers in the world of cinema", would be handed the Honorary Golden Bear prize at a gala ceremony in the German capital on February 20th.
"For anyone who considers cinema as the art of shaping a story in such a way that is both completely personal and universal, Martin Scorsese is an unmatched role model," festival chiefs Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian said in a statement.
"His films have accompanied our history as spectators and human beings, his characters have lived and grown within us, his view of history and mankind has helped us to understand and question who we are and where we come from."
Beyond his own award-winning films such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and The Wolf of Wall Street, the festival praised Scorsese's efforts to restore and distribute classic motion pictures.
This year the festival awarded fellow Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg its Honorary Golden Bear.
The Berlinale, running February 15-25th, ranks along with Cannes and Venice among Europe's top film festivals.
Germany to miss house-building targets in 2024
For the second and third year in a row, the government predicts it will fall significantly short of its house-building goals.
According to Housing Minister Klara Geywitz (SPD), 265,000 apartments are likely to be completed in Germany in the coming year. That's according to a new forecast by the German Institute for Economic Research.
In its coalition pact agreed back in November 2021, the traffic-light coalition of the SPD, Greens and FDP had set itself the target of building 400,000 apartments a year in the fight against rising rents.
With Germany hit by an unforeseeable recession, however, it has become impossible to build 100,000 more apartments, Geywitz said. "But I am pleased that we have stable completion figures," she said.
Alongside the country's flagging economy, the real estate sector is also struggling with higher interest rates, which are making it more expensive to finance projects. In addition, the cost of construction and materials has risen sharply. As a result, many projects are being postponed or canceled, particularly in residential construction.
READ ALSO: What will happen to the German property market in 2024?
However, Geywitz did say the outlook was better than had been predicted at the start of the year: she expects 270,000 new apartments to be built by the end of 2023 and believes the outlook on the housing market will brighten at the "end of 2024, beginning of 2025".
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