In an internal report, the German "Bundeskriminalamt" (federal police) wrote that the attacks were an example of "taharrush gamea", following the Egyptian pronunciation "taḥarrush gamāʿī" ("collective harassment").
In an internal report dated 10 January 2016, the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of Justice wrote that the attacks were an example of "taharrush gamea", a form of group sexual harassment that takes place in crowds. The transliteration followed the Egyptian pronunciation "taḥarrush gamāʿī" ("collective harassment").