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Turks in Germany celebrate Euro semi-final berth

Society Materials 21 June 2008 12:31 (UTC +04:00)

Tens of thousands of Turks living in Germany partied peacefully until the early hours of Saturday after their team reached the Euro 2008 semi-finals the previous night, reported dpa.

"The atmosphere is wild but very peaceful," said a police spokesman in Berlin. "The fans are very approachable because there is hardly any alcohol involved."

Some minor scuffles were reported from Frankfurt.

The street parties of delighted Turkey fans on Berlin's Kurfuerstendamm, Hamburg's Reeperbahn and elsewhere in Germany started just minutes after Turkey beat Croatia on penalties on Vienna on Friday night.

Traffic came to a standstill in Cologne, Bremen, Munich and elsewhere as the Turks were ecstatic about their team's first ever place in the final four of the continental tournament.

Some 30,000 fans watched the game in Hamburg's fan zone and large crowds were also reported from other public viewing areas.

Huge crowds will also be expected on Wednesday in the German fan zones when Turkey play Germany in Basle, Switzerland, for a place in the final.

Turks form the biggest community of foreigners in Germany with 1,7 million, while 225,309 Croatians live in the country.

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