Safety Concerns Grow in Germany After New Year's Eve Assaults - Poll

Personal safety concerns have increased in Germany following a series of assaults in the country on New Year's Eve, a recent poll by YouGov Deutschland revealed Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On New Year's Eve, hundreds of women in several German cities, in particular in Hamburg and Cologne, were allegedly robbed, threatened and sexually assaulted by as many as 1,000 men of Arab and North African appearance, who reportedly divided in small groups. In Cologne alone, the number of assault complaints currently exceeds 560.

According to the poll, 56 percent of the Germans polled on January 8-11 are now afraid of walking alone in the evening, while in October 2014, only 41 mentioned this fear when asked what they were mostly scared of.

Fear of foreign-looking groups of people has also increased in Germany from 36 percent to 56 percent, the poll revealed.

About 53 percent of German respondents also mentioned that in some neighborhoods they preferred not to leave their apartments because they "cannot even rely on the police here," YouGov found.

Following the New Year's Eve incidents, police reports stated that the authorities had failed to respond to the assaults and violence. In Cologne, the police chief was put on early retirement, as reports about his force's incompetence emerged.