Over the past month, as part of its mission of tracking contemporary manifestations of Jew-hatred worldwide, the CAM Antisemitism Research Center detected and monitored an uptick in incidents targeting Germany’s Jewish community.
The incidents have included acts of hateful speech and conduct, vandalism, and physical violence, with the motivations of the perpetrators spanning the ideological spectrum.
In mid-July, a 15-year-old male was arrested after shouting antisemitic statements at Munich’s Central Station. He also threatened with a knife and punched a passerby who had confronted him.
On July 16, in an essay published in Zeit Online, German journalist Fabian Wolff, a prominent critic of Israel, revealed his past claims about being Jewish were false.
The following week, the genocidal anti-Israel chant of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” was heard at a pride parade in Berlin, and banner calling for an “intifada” was displayed.
NOW – People at “queer pride” event in Berlin chant: „From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.“
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) July 22, 2023
“Intifada – Serhildan”
Teilnehmende der “Internationalist Queer Pride”, die zur Stunde vom Hermannplatz zum Oranienplatz in #Berlin zieht, tragen ein Transparent, auf der eine Intifada gefordert wird. #b2207 #iqpberlin pic.twitter.com/pYAOKnb34u— Jüdisches Forum (JFDA e.V.) (@JFDA_eV) July 22, 2023
On July 25, it was reported that Nazi swastikas had been spray-painted on five gravestones in the Wurzeln-Morsbach Jewish cemetery, located north of the western German city of Aachen.
German police have opened an investigation after swastikas were sprayed-painted on tombstones in the Wurzeln-Morsbach Jewish cemetery, located north of Aachen, Germany.https://t.co/0RNLxHBNli pic.twitter.com/Fhehfcy0JR
— Combat Antisemitism Movement (@CombatASemitism) July 25, 2023
In early August, retired German teacher Frank Borner, from the village of Petersdorf on the island of Fehmarn, was exposed for falsely portraying himself as a Jew under the mantle of an organized program to introduce non-Jews to Jewish people and practices.
On August 4, a 57-year-old woman was arrested in Munich for verbally harassing students and teachers at a Jewish elementary school. She told police her outburst had been triggered by hearing Hebrew being spoken.
A 57-year-old woman was arrested last week for verbally harassing students and teachers at a Jewish elementary school in Munich, Germany.
She told police her outburst was triggered by hearing Hebrew being spoken.https://t.co/BwNVnCM8DH
— Combat Antisemitism Movement (@CombatASemitism) August 9, 2023
The next day, an Israeli tourist talking on Hebrew on a phone while walking to a supermarket in Berlin was assaulted by three attackers who got out of a car that had pulled up next to him.
The victim suffered a minor arm injury and was treated at a hospital.
Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor commented, “Israelis and Jews should not feel unsafe walking the streets of Berlin or any other German city. German authorities must take all measures possible to stop the attacks and incitement against Israel and Jews before it is too late.”
Ein weiterer Israeli wird in der deutschen Hauptstadt brutal angegriffen. Das ist inakzeptabel!
Israelis und Juden sollten sich in den Straßen von Berlin oder jeder anderen deutschen Stadt nicht unsicher fühlen. Die deutschen Behörden müssen jede Maßnahme ergreifen, um diese… pic.twitter.com/k1jeOQiWdj— Ambassador Ron Prosor (@Ron_Prosor) August 6, 2023
On August 8, Euronews reported that prosecutors in Germany had uncovered illegal content, including Nazi symbols, in chat messages involving five officers from three different police districts following searches in the North Rhine-Westphalia region.
The same week, Nazi swastikas were found carved into a prayer bench at Munich’s main synagogue, Ohel Jakob.
Just this past weekend, an unidentified vandal burned a book box, once a phone booth, that is part of the “Gleis 17” (Platform 17) memorial at Grunewald train station in Berlin, commemorating the thousands of Jews who were deported to concentration camps from there by the Nazis during the Holocaust.
At the Grunewald train station in Berlin, Germany, on Saturday, an unidentified vandal set fire to a book box — once a phone booth — that is part of the “Gleis 17” (Platform 17) memorial, which commemorates the thousands of Jews who were deported from there during the… pic.twitter.com/bjAF2uzBL2
— Combat Antisemitism Movement (@CombatASemitism) August 14, 2023
Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office tallied a total of 960 antisemitic crimes in the first half of 2023, including 25 acts of violence.
Jew-hatred is unfortunately still very much alive in Germany. The country’s Federal Criminal Police Office tallied a total of 960 antisemitic incidents in the first half of 2023, including 25 acts of violence.https://t.co/2qRaLtKzaP pic.twitter.com/bvuxjv0jfy
— Combat Antisemitism Movement (@CombatASemitism) August 10, 2023
The CAM Antisemitism Research Center’s weekly monitoring of antisemitism incidents data can be followed at: combatantisemitism.org/research
