Germany bans waving Russian flags

The highest administrative court said it agreed with police, who feared that Russian flags and St George strips could be interpreted as symbols of support for Russia's war in Ukraine.

“in the current context, they can be understood as a declaration of sympathy for war and convey a willingness to use violence”, the court said in a statement, writes Al Jazeera.

Police had initially banned Ukrainian and Russian flags at the memorial site on May 8th and 9th, when the end of World War II is commemorated each year. They had argued that “respect for these memorials and monuments should be preserved in the context of the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war”.