Hundreds of North Africans Screened by German police on New Year’s Eve in Cologne

German police screened 650 mostly North African men on New Year’s Eve in Cologne in an effort to prevent a repeat of last year’s attacks where women filed hundreds of reports of sexual harassment, robberies and rapes by men described by police of North African and Arab appearance.

Later in a press conference, police chief Juergen Mathies denied that authorities were racially profiling the men, adding that many of the men detained had been aggressive.

“A large part of this group that was checked was such that criminal acts were to be expected,” he said. “That is why we took this clear approach.”