Berlin police banned demonstrations to mark Nakba Day, including a rally for Al Jazeera journalist

The Berlin Administrative Court said that past experience from similar demonstrations last year and in recent weeks, in which stones and bottles were thrown at police and fireworks were set on fire, led to a decision on the ban

News agencies

15/05/2022

Sunday, 15 May 2022, 10:19 Updated: 10:23

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Berlin police banned five Palestinian demonstrations to mark Nakba Day today (Sunday).

Palestinian groups announced last week that they would demonstrate today against Israel and its policies.

According to the Berlin authorities, there is an immediate consensus that inciting antisemitic chants and violent glories will be heard and that the demonstrations will turn violent.

Police also banned a rally in memory of journalist Sheerin Abu Akla al-Jazeera, who was killed on Thursday in Jenin.

The rally was organized by a Jewish group called the Jüdische Stimme, which supports Palestinian rights.

But police told the group that the incident was included as part of a ban on demonstrations ahead of Nakba Day.

According to Wieland Hoben, chairman of the Jüdische Stimme, the argument about anti-Semitism is an excuse: “The Senate in Berlin wants to prevent Palestinian solidarity as much as possible.

"They will take a bunch of teenagers who say antisemitic statements and use it to cast doubt on thousands of people who want to demonstrate peacefully."

A request by a group called Palestine Spixes to lift the ban was rejected by the court on Friday.

The Berlin Administrative Court has said that past experience from similar demonstrations last year and in recent weeks, in which stones and bottles were thrown at police and fireworks were set on fire, justifies fears that the demonstrations could turn violent.

Last month, a court in Berlin left an area for a pro-Palestinian demonstration in the capital as a result of antisemitic incidents on the sidelines of a pro-Israel demonstration.

Palestinian leaders in Berlin have made it clear that they condemn antisemitic statements in their demonstrations.

According to them, their only goal is to highlight Israeli oppression in the territories.

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