There were three large areas full of people during the night, a police spokesperson said on Sunday. Police confiscated three music systems and cleared the areas because of coronavirus restrictions, she said. People were spoken to and directed out of the park, she said.

A police helicopter was also deployed. Everything went peacefully and the operation ended at around 4 am (0200 GMT), she said.

According to the local newspaper BZ, many tourists and participants in the LGBTIQ+ Pride demonstrations on Saturday were among the people celebrating. Several thousand people had demonstrated with rainbow flags for the rights of gays, lesbians and transgender people.

The small James Simon Park opposite the city’s Museum Island was also cleared by the police because of the coronavirus measures. There were too many people there, the spokesperson said. “It was just too crowded.”