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Austria is experiencing a disturbing wave of antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents, as multiple Israeli visitors have recently denied service at restaurants and campsites, and protesters disrupted one of the country’s most prestigious cultural events, the Salzburg Festival.
On Saturday, six anti-Israel activists stormed the stage during Austrian Vice-Chancellor Andreas Babler’s opening speech at the Salzburg Festival, shouting “Blood on your hands!” while wearing fake staff badges.
One protester, hands painted red and raised high shouted “Blood on your hands!” For many Jews, bloody hands evoke memories the 2000 Ramallah lynching, when a Palestinian terrorist held up his bloodied hands to a cheering mob after brutally slaughtering two Israeli soldiers. The gesture has since become a symbol of intimidation, used to provoke and instill fear.
Banners reading “Free Gaza Now” were also unfurled during the incident.
The Salzburg Festival.
A frenzied white Austrian on stage, screaming in German about those bloody J*ws.
I’m sure we’ve seen that before… pic.twitter.com/b6oNyTwZRT
— Joo🎗️ (@JoosyJew) July 28, 2025
The breach, which occurred at one of Europe’s most renowned classical music events, has drawn intense scrutiny over security lapses. The counterfeit badges used by the activists were riddled with errors, including a misspelling of the festival name and fictitious names. No background checks were conducted, raising alarm about what might have happened if the intruders had been armed.
Festival director Lukas Crepaz said security measures have since been tightened. Meanwhile, David Sonnenbaum, one of the intruders, admitted to Austria’s Kurier newspaper, “I was amazed, myself, at how easy it was.”
Israelis Barred from Campsite in Tyrol
Just days earlier, Israeli couple Nissan and Michal Dekalo were turned away from Camping Dr. Lauth in Ehrwald, Tyrol while celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary. After parking their camper and preparing to check in, the couple presented their Israeli passports — prompting a chilling response from staff: “We have no place for Jews here.”
Dekalo, who lives in Kibbutz Nahal Oz near the Gaza border and played a critical role in defending his community during the October 7 Hamas massacre, described the incident as both humiliating and surreal. “We tried to understand innocently if they had a bad experience with Israelis before,” he wrote, “but no, it’s about Gaza.”
“There’s no place for Israelis here, get out”
An Israeli couple says they were denied entry to a campground in Austria because they are Israeli.
Nissan Dekalo and his wife were celebrating their 25th anniversary when the manager reportedly told them, “There’s no place for… pic.twitter.com/p8hUMsXAIM
— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) July 29, 2025
When questioned by German-language outlet Jüdische Allgemeine, the campsite’s operator responded: “These people should much rather take care of the many children in Gaza. Otherwise, there is nothing to say.”
Israeli Musicians Ordered to Leave Vienna Restaurant for Speaking Hebrew
In Vienna, three Israeli classical musicians — Amit Peled, Julia Gurvitch, and Hagai Shaham — were refused service at Pizzeria Ristorante Ramazotti after speaking Hebrew while placing their order. Peled recalled that when asked what language they were speaking, he replied, “Hebrew, of course.” The waiter then responded, “In that case, leave. I’m not serving you food.”
“The initial shock and humiliation were profound,” Peled wrote on social media. “But what struck us even more deeply was what came next — or rather, what didn’t. The people around us… went back to their dinners… as though nothing had happened. Welcome to Europe 2025.”
‼️Europe, Summer 2025‼️
Just yesterday in Vienna, Austria, violinist Haggai Shaham, pianist Julia Gurvitch, and I were enjoying a quiet moment in a cozy little Italian restaurant — grabbing a bite before our concert. Naturally, we were speaking Hebrew among ourselves.
After… pic.twitter.com/XKFWkwg7o8— Amit Peled (@PeledAmit) July 25, 2025
A Growing Pattern of Hate
These incidents are not isolated. They are part of a broader and deeply troubling trend — the normalization of antisemitism in European public life, often cloaked in the language of activism or political dissent.
This pattern has already been seen taking hold across the continent, including in Portugal, Italy, and Greece, where Jews have explicitly been told they do not belong. Whether through the hijacking of cultural events, discriminatory business practices, exclusion in academia, or the silent complicity of onlookers, the message is unmistakable: Jews are being treated as if they have no place in European society.
