Federal police are banned from knife at Berlin's train stations!

Federal police are banned from knife at Berlin's train stations!

Berlin, Deutschland - The federal police have introduced new knife ban zones at several train stations in Berlin, which aim to prevent violence and protect both travelers and police officers. From May 26 to June 30, 2025, this regulation will be effective daily from 2 p.m. to 4 a.m. The affected train stations include the main train station, zoological garden and Alexanderplatz. Firearms, scissors with blades over 6 cm, hatchets, baseball bats and many other dangerous objects are prohibited. In the event of violations by these objects, compulsory money can be threatened or determined. In addition, the federal police monitor compliance with the ban.

There are already three permanent betting zones in Berlin: at Leopoldplatz, in Görlitzer Park and at the Kottbusser Tor. In these zones, the number of registered knife attacks is ten per day. The police recorded a total of 3,482 knife attacks in 2023, which corresponds to an increase compared to previous years.

Expansion of security measures

The introduction of the betting zones is considered sensible by the Berlin police. Valeska Jakubowski, police spokeswoman, emphasizes the advantages of these regulations, including the possibility of performing occasional controls. This could further reduce the risk by confiscating even knives that are not prohibited by law. It is possible that these temporary prohibition zones will also be used in major events.

Interior Senator Iris Spranger and Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser call for a tightening of gun law. Political support does not only come from the parties in the government alliance; Representatives of the CDU also support the new measures. However, there is criticism from the left faction and the Greens, who consider the regulations as ineffective and warn of arbitrary controls without suspicion. Vasili Franco from the Greens describes the zones as a "wrong promise" to combat knife attacks.

entire strategy against razor crime

The new prohibition zones are part of an overall strategy of the state government in order to counteract rising razor crime. The ruling mayor Kai Wegner emphasizes the need for such measures, while a "coordination office knife" was set up at the State Criminal Police Office to analyze the crime statistics and to monitor the efficiency of the new regulations.

Berlin security policy is still being accompanied by intensive discussions, and the police remain vigilant in dealing with the new regulations. The social pressure is growing to find solutions to the continuing problems of knife crime.

For more information on the regulations and the current positioning picture in Berlin, visit rbb24, Tagesspiegel and rbb24 .