A failed greeting message from the Hessian SPD on the day before the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur caused outrage on the Internet.
The party and the parliamentary group had published a greeting on their social media channels on Facebook and Instagram, in which they wished all Jews "Gmar chatima tova", the traditional congratulations on the "Day of Reconciliation", as stated in the article called.
However, those responsible illustrated the article with a photo of the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a holy site of Islam, but which is also important for Jews.
Rainer Schulz
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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The shitstorm was not long in coming.
Numerous users complained or made fun of the error.
The accusation of "anti-Semitic politics" was not long in coming.
On the morning of the holiday, the party and parliamentary group then published a long article in which Christoph Gering, head of the press office, apologized in detail.
He writes that the fault lies solely in his department: "Something incredibly stupid happened to us, for which we are rightly criticized."
No member of parliament and no member of the party leadership had seen the post in advance.
"Insult and disgrace should therefore only be directed at the press office and at me as its head.
My sincere apologies to members of the Jewish community and anyone who felt provoked, offended or offended by the post.”
Apparently, Gehring and the press office hit the right note.
Because apart from the ongoing criticism and further insults, the apology is also commented on by a number of users as credible, honest and "absolutely sufficient".