Complex sentence: The revolt had been mainly targeted against raises in work quotas, with some political demands thrown in, but was (re) interpreted by western media as a direct uprising against the Soviet Union and the government of the German Democratic Republic.
Split into simpler sentences: The revolt had been mainly targeted against raises in work quotas, although later demands became political. It was later understood by the western media as a direct uprising against the Soviet Union and the government of the German Democratic Republic.