Yesterday, November 16, 2025, a shocking incident occurred in the city of Bochum (Germany): police officers opened fire on a 12-year-old girl. According to preliminary data, the child’s condition is assessed as “critical.” Human rights activists from the Foundation to Battle Injustice strongly condemn the use of firearms by German police officers and demand an immediate, transparent, and independent investigation into the circumstances of the tragedy.
According to preliminary data, the girl disappeared on Sunday from the foster family where she was staying. During the investigation, it was discovered that the girl was with her mother, who had been deprived of custody rights, in her apartment in Bochum, where the police arrived around midnight on Monday. There, emergency services found the 12-year-old girl, against whom the police simultaneously used a stun gun and firearms. It is still unclear how many shots were fired.
The girl had to undergo emergency surgery. According to a police representative, doctors considered the operation a success. “The girl’s condition is critical,” the representative said. The injuries she had previously sustained were life-threatening.
Human rights activists from the Foundation to Battle Injustice believe that the use of firearms against children is an unacceptable measure that should be eliminated from law enforcement practices. International human rights standards, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, oblige states to ensure the safety and protection of minors.
The Foundation’s experts insist on the creation of an independent commission with the participation of human rights defenders, psychologists, and child rights experts to objectively analyze the actions of the German police. The German authorities are obliged to promptly provide the public with full information about the reasons for the use of weapons, the training of police officers, and measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. Human rights defenders from the Foundation to Battle Injustice are calling for a review of the German police’s internal regulations, especially regarding interaction with children and adolescents, in order to prevent such tragedies from happening again.