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Motorcade of Mahmoud Abbas in Berlin (on August 16)
Photo: JENS SCHLUETER / AFP
Politically, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' accusation of the Holocaust against Israel has already caused considerable unrest.
Now there are also possible criminal consequences.
At least the Berlin police got involved in the case.
"The preliminary investigation into the initial suspicion of incitement to hatred under Section 130 of the Criminal Code is being processed in a specialist department of the State Criminal Police Office," said a police spokeswoman for the "Bild" newspaper.
At a joint press conference with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in the Chancellery on Tuesday, Abbas accused Israel of multiple "Holocausts" against the Palestinians, triggering outrage.
"Israel has committed 50 massacres in 50 Palestinian locations from 1947 to the present day," Abbas said, adding, "50 massacres, 50 holocausts."
When asked by "Bild", the Federal Foreign Office stated that the Federal Government assumes that Abbas enjoys immunity because he was in the Federal Republic as part of an "official visit".
The Augsburg criminal law expert Michael Kubiciel told the "Bild" that it was not important whether Abbas was in Berlin at the invitation of the Federal Republic.
Many people would accept an invitation from government agencies without enjoying immunity.
It is therefore crucial that the person was in Germany “as a representative of another state”.
Consequently, the question "whether Palestine is a state or not is of crucial importance," said Kubiciel.
Germany did not recognize Palestine as a state.
Chancellor's phone call to Premier Lapid
Chancellor Scholz called Israel's Prime Minister Jair Lapid about Abbas' statements.
At the beginning of the conversation, the chancellor again rejected and condemned Abbas' statements, Lapid's office said on Thursday.
It was therefore important for Scholz to clarify this personally and publicly.
Lapid is himself the son of a Holocaust survivor.
The chancellor did not reply at the press conference and only later clearly distanced himself from the statements (read more here).
The fact that Scholz did not immediately contradict the statement was widely criticized.
On Twitter, Lapid thanked Scholz for condemning Abbas' statements.
jok/dpa