Status: 13.10.2023, 20:10 PM
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Police officers stand on Hermannplatz in front of a group from which chants of "Free Palestine" came. © Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa
Following calls for violence, Jewish and Israeli institutions are under special protection. Many people are expressing their solidarity after the terrorist attack on Israel. But the mood in Berlin remains tense. Again and again the police have to intervene.
Berlin - Calls for violence on the one hand, solidarity on the other: While there were pro-Palestinian gatherings on Friday, especially in Neukölln, several hundred people in Kreuzberg expressed their solidarity with Israel in front of the synagogue on Fraenkelufer.
Some people had candles with them on Friday evening or flags and signs with the Star of David. The memorial and commemoration event was called by Berlin citizens with the support of the Jewish community. The police spoke of around 350 participants. In the morning, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited the synagogue and its congregation in response to terror threats against Jewish institutions.
Increased protection for Jewish institutions
Police have stepped up protection for Israeli and Jewish institutions in the capital due to calls for violence by the Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas. Demonstrations or gatherings of Palestinian groups are to be closely monitored or banned because of possible anti-Semitic content. As the police announced on Friday evening, they classify a rally planned for Saturday on Oranienplatz in Kreuzberg as dangerous and banned the event as well as any alternative event until October 20.
Regardless of such bans on demonstrations, larger groups of people have been gathering again and again, especially in Neukölln, since the attack on Israel by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. On Friday, there were again pro-Palestinian gatherings and minor riots in the Sonnenallee area. Again and again, police dispersed the individual groups on the sidewalks and prohibited gatherings. Some people were temporarily arrested. Similar scenes had already taken place on Wednesday and Thursday in Berlin.
The police had announced an increased presence on the streets in the next few days; especially in Neukölln, in Wedding and in the government district. On Neukölln's Sonnenallee, numerous police officers with helmets and many squad cars could be seen. According to police, up to 400 emergency personnel were on the road on Friday.
Security authorities in close contact
Since the terrorist attack, the security authorities have been in constant exchange, said Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and Berlin's Interior Senator Iris Spranger (both SPD) on Friday after a joint video conference of the interior ministers. It is important to be able to react quickly to any change, Spranger emphasized. As chairwoman of the Conference of Interior Ministers (IMK), she had invited at short notice. In view of the calls for violence by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, it is very important to "send a signal" that we are acting together throughout Germany, Spranger said after the special conference.
"We take the current danger of solidarity and support actions for Hamas' terror very seriously," Faeser said. The security authorities are currently targeting the Islamist scene even more strongly. All legal means would be used to prevent solidarity with Hamas.
In several German cities, planned Palestinian demonstrations have been banned due to security concerns, possible anti-Semitic exclamations or glorification of violence.
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Tougher crackdown on anti-Israel slogans
A Berlin police spokeswoman said there were no indications of concrete dangers from serious crimes. "In Berlin, we are counting on what we have seen in recent days." However, the police are prepared for a possible large-scale operation in addition to the existing protection for Jewish institutions.
At the same time, the public prosecutor's office and the police want to take more rigid action against anti-Israel slogans at rallies by Palestinian groups. The public prosecutor's office is examining whether the use of the oft-used slogan "From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free" is a criminal offense, the authorities said. The phrase means that there should be a free Palestine in an area from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea - where Israel is now. Corresponding maps show the area in green, the color of Islam, during demonstrations.
Numerous expressions of solidarity
Federal President Steinmeier's visit to the synagogue in Berlin was a reaction to the threats against Jewish communities. "Today is a day of fear for Jews worldwide and here in Germany," he said after speaking with members of the Jewish community. "That's why my place is among you today. At this time, I stand on behalf of our entire nation at the side of our threatened compatriots, at the side of all Jews in Germany."
On the occasion of the Jewish day of rest, Shabbat, Bishop Christian Stäblein assured the Jewish community of the solidarity of the Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia (EKBO). This Sunday (15 October), a city-wide service will be held at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church to pray for peace and the release of Hamas hostages.
Many Concerned Jews in Berlin
Many Jews in Berlin were very worried about the upcoming weekend. Some restaurants remain closed, numerous families did not send their children to school on Friday and preferred to stay at home at the weekend, as "Berliner Zeitung" and "Tagesspiegel" reported. The Central Council of Jews in Germany sees the danger of "free riders and lone perpetrators". Since Wednesday, calls for violence against Jewish institutions have been circulating on Internet portals and chat groups.
The police reported corresponding crimes. For example, unknown persons have smeared a Star of David on the front door of an apartment building in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg. An Israeli flag was set on fire at the Reinickendorf town hall. A burn hole remained, as the district office announced in the afternoon. At the Red City Hall, an unknown person had already torn down an Israeli flag on Wednesday.
"We will not open our restaurant. I'm very scared," said the owner of an Israeli shop, who wished to remain anonymous. She said she decided to close her restaurant until Saturday because she didn't feel safe. The Israeli restaurant "Feinberg's" in Berlin says it has been receiving an increase in hate calls since the Hamas attacks, according to owner Yorai Feinberg. Dpa