Firefighters and police officers are being attacked more and more frequently while on the call of duty, according to a parliamentary statement published on Friday.

Within four years, the number of verbal and physical crimes against police officers, rescue forces, firefighters, customs officials and federal emergency services rose by 22 percent.

In 2017, 4,527 “enforcement officers and similar persons” became victims of violent crimes nationwide, according to the response of an inquiry that the Free Democrats (FDP) submitted to the German government.

The numbers represent a sharp increase since 2013, when 3,710 members of emergency forces were attacked.

These statistics, however, do not include cases which resulted in physical harm. These are recorded in police statistics as “violent crimes.”

Between 41 percent and 49 percent of those attacked emergency personnel in recent years were under the influence of alcohol.

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