Thirty-nine detained following 'corona party' brawl in Germany

At least thirty-nine people were taken into custodyafter police were attacked with "a hail of bottles" at an open-air party in central Frankfurt attended by thousands of youngsters, AFP report said quoting police in the German city on Sunday.

Five officers were injured in the attack that began at around 3:00 am (0100 GMT) when police intervened to stop a brawl involving around 30 people in Frankfurt's historic Opera square.

The square has become a popular gathering place for what local media have dubbed "corona parties" as Germany's bars and clubs remain closed to contain the spread of the virus.

Some 3,000 mainly young people filled the square again on Saturday evening but only around 500 to 800 were still there when the unrest started, Frankfurt police chief Gerhard Bereswill told a press conference.

A small group of officers moved in to help a bleeding man and end the brawl, but the crowd turned on them.

"What I find especially abhorrent is that bystanders cheered and clapped when bottles hit my colleagues," Bereswill said.

Back-up police then arrived and cleared the square, while facing "a hail of bottles" from the angry crowd, he said.

A total of 39 arrests were made, including one woman.

The others were men aged 17-21 "most of whom have a migrant background", Bereswill added.

Eight people remain in custody and face possible charges of disturbing the peace.

Tensions have also spilled over from the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the United States where officers are accused of being racist.

(With inputs from AFP)