Hamburg places blanket ban on weapons in buses and trams

The northern port city of Hamburg is set to become the first of Germany's 16 states to adopt a blanket ban on all weapons from being carried on public transport.

The decision comes after the German government passed a law giving states more powers to improve public safety.

Why is the ban being implemented now?

Andy Grote, the city's senator for the interior, said public transport was increasingly busy in both the city and its suburbs.

"That's why we have to make sure that everyone can feel safe here," Grote told the DPA news agency, adding that Hamburg was the first federal state to systematically implement the options provided by the security package.

Other German states may now follow suit with their own bans, a Hamburg city spokesman confirmed, although they are not compelled to do so.

It is thought that the federal government in Berlin might also press ahead with a similar weapons ban on the country's long-distance train network.

Details of the ban are to be presented on Monday. According to the Hamburg authorities, it should come into force next week.

The legislation followed a series of serious incidents in public places, including a knife attack in the western German city of Solingen in August in which three people died.

Edited by: Roshni Majumdar