New gun law: Interior Minister Ebling tightens rules for knives!

New gun law: Interior Minister Ebling tightens rules for knives!

In Rhineland-Palatinate, the idea of ​​security is taking a new direction. On Wednesday, Interior Minister Michael Ebling (SPD) will present a series of security prevention measures in Mainz at 1:00 p.m., which are particularly aimed at addressing the concerns of citizens. This initiative comes in response to worrying acts of violence that have severely shaken the sense of security in affected regions, as [rheinpfalz.de](https://www.rheinpfalz.de/rheinland-pfalz_artikel,-innenminister-ebling-stellen-neuerungen-im- Waffenrecht-vor-_arid,5813151.html) reports.

A central topic that Ebling will address in this context is the innovations in gun law. In addition, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) is also planning to tighten the rules for handling knives in public. Ebling supports this project and sees the stricter rules as an important step towards increasing security. However, the Interior Minister deviates from the idea of ​​introducing weapon or knife ban zones in Rhineland-Palatinate. Instead, he thinks it makes more sense to ban the carrying of knives with a fixed blade of six centimeters or more in public, while the current ban only applies to blades of twelve centimeters or more. Attacks with knives less than twelve centimeters could have fatal consequences, he emphasizes.

The knife crime situation

Despite a decrease in knife crimes of around 25 percent from 2020 to 2023 in Rhineland-Palatinate, the nationwide development shows a different trend. While the numbers are falling in Rhineland-Palatinate, reports of violence with knives are increasing in other parts of Germany. According to police statistics, there were several knife attacks every day in Berlin and Lower Saxony alone. The reasons for the different developments are complex. [swr.de](https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/ Waffenverbotszonen-rlp-innenminister-ebling-fuer-verschaerfte-regelen-bei-umgang-mit-messern-100.html) emphasizes that Ebling emphasizes that people's sense of security cannot always be explained by the objective numbers.

The tightening of the weapons law, which came into force in October 2024, allows the authorities to more easily introduce knife ban zones at events and important transport hubs and fines have also been increased. However, according to [tagesschau.de](https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/gesellschaft/messer- criminalitaet-violent-100.html), the implementation of such zones requires intensive monitoring. Ebling argues that such measures can only be effective if they are consistently monitored. Prevention and education remain the keys to success - the police are already active here and are sensitizing young people to the issue on social media.

The role of society

In addition to the legislation, a national action plan against knife violence is also called for to provide more resources for social projects and awareness campaigns. Criminologist Britta Bannenberg sees the introduction of weapon ban zones as a sensible measure to increase security in crime hotspots, but also notes that there is no absolute security guarantee. However, while the number of robbery-related knife attacks is decreasing, the number of knife attacks in the context of individual violence is worrying.

Public discussion shows that young men up to the age of 40 are particularly involved in knife attacks. Considerations are also made about the origin of the suspects, although this is only one aspect among many. The demand for more information and the involvement of society in the problem could be a way to sustainably strengthen the sense of security of the citizens of Rhineland-Palatinate.