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Palestine demonstration in Munich on December 16, 2023

Photo: Sachelle Babbar / ZUMA Wire / IMAGO

Anti-Israel groups are planning a “Palestine Congress” in Berlin from April 12th to 14th. The youth organizations of the SPD, Union, FDP and Greens are calling on federal politicians and the city of Berlin to "speak out against the anti-Semitism and the glorification of terror that threaten to emanate from the 'Congress'." This emerges from a joint appeal by the four young political organizations and the Jewish Student Union (JSUD), which SPIEGEL has received.

The youth organizations warn that groups and people are taking part in the event "who agitate against the existence of Israel, describe the October 7th massacre as a legitimate act of resistance or Hamas as a guerrilla group and freedom fighters and speak out against peaceful coexistence." They fear that trivialization of terrorism and anti-Semitism will be given a platform in Berlin. It is also to be expected that there will be a “networking of anti-Israel structures and people who are close to Hamas or PFLP or who support their actions.”

Sheer hatred

The signatories point out the increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents since October 7th. According to the Federal Association of Research and Information Centers RIAS, there are almost 30 per day. While Hamas is still holding around 130 people hostage, the planned congress is expected to legitimize anti-Semitic terror, according to the signatories. The aim of the congress is not to open up space for critical debates about the situation in the Middle East, but rather to propagate sheer hatred against Israel. "Anyone who advocates peaceful coexistence in the Middle East must stand against this 'congress', whose organizers want the opposite - the destruction of Israel," says the call.

The initiative against the congress came from the Young Forum (JuFo) of the German-Israeli Society. “It quickly became clear to us that we were all in demand here across party lines,” JuFo chairman Constantin Ganß told SPIEGEL. “Nobody wants to see anti-Semitism and terrorism escalate further, we and the party youth agree on that.”

Senate examines ban

On their website, the organizers of the congress call for an "end to the Zionist settler colonialism and ethnic cleansing of the entire occupied Palestine that has been going on for over 76 years" and question Israel's right to exist. The organizers are calling for a boycott and sanctions against the Israeli state, including the “immediate cessation of all military, diplomatic and economic support for Israel by the German state as well as a comprehensive military embargo.” The congress initiators do not mention the Hamas massacre of 1,200 Israelis or the deportation of people to the Gaza Strip.

The Senate will not ban the event, but is considering a ban on political activity against individuals. Interior State Secretary Christian Hochgrebe (SPD) said in the Interior Committee of the Federal Republic of Germany that everything possible would be done within the framework of legal possibilities to "prevent crimes such as incitement to hatred and the use of forbidden symbols, as well as the spread of hatred and incitement against Israel and the Jewish population." House of Representatives said.

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