Tuesday 11, April
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Outrage after antisemitic slogans reportedly heard at Palestinian demonstration on Easter Saturday
On Easter Saturday, several hundred people marched through Kreuzberg and Neukölln to demonstrate against the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. The 500 participants walked from Rathaus Neukölln to Kottbusser Tor, waving Palestinian flags and chanting. Now a police investigation is underway to investigate reports of incitement to hatred – with video material seeming to show demonstrators engaging in antisemitic slogans.
The Israeli ambassador to Germany claimed that the demonstrators crossed “every possible red line”.
German politicians did not wait to condemn the incidents. Berlin’s Senator for the Interior Iris Spranger issued a statement condemning antisemitism, while the Israeli ambassador to Germany claimed that the demonstrators crossed “every possible red line”. As yet, there is little comment from the organisers.
Recent years have seen the issue of Israel-Palestine become increasingly fraught in Berlin. Last year, Berliners marking Nakba Day – the day commemorating the expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland – were arrested for as little as carrying Palestinian flags or wearing the keffiyeh. The Al-Quds demonstration, which normally takes place on April 15th in Charlottenburg has also been cancelled this year, and there has been talk in the city of enacting a permanent ban on the demo.
