Cologne: Up to 1,000 men of Arab and North African origin sexually assault women

[ZuWo]

http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/koeln-nach-uebergriffen-an-silvester-polizei-geht-60-anzeigen-nach-a-1070465.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3384423/German-police-hunt-group-1-000-men-Arab-North-African-origin-sexually-assaulted-numerous-women-threw-fireworks-crowds-Cologne-train-station-New-Year-s-Eve.html

Police: 'A completely new dimension of crime'

[ZuWo]

It does indeed sound too fantastical but the police, the Mayor of Cologne as well as members of te NRW government have all confirmed this.

[ZuWo]

Reports indicate that relevant information regarding the origin of the assailants was initially withheld by police authorities as it was deemed politically problematic. Apparently a large number of aggressors were recent asylum seekers.
Similar cases of sexual assaults committed by what victims have described as clearly foreign individuals were reported in other German cities such as Hamburg and Stuttgart as well as in Zurich, though at a considerably smaller scale.