Status: 30.11.2023, 20:58 PM
By: Peter Sieben
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A Christmas market or a synagogue: these were the targets of the attacks that two young Islamists had discussed. Hate preachers lure young people online.
Düsseldorf – The warning light has been flashing for weeks. Now what some had already prophesied since the attack on Israel by the terrorist organization Hamas on October 7 is becoming tangible: Two young people have apparently planned an Islamist attack on what they see as "infidels" in Germany. Possible destinations were a Christmas market or a synagogue in North Rhine-Westphalia. Two weeks ago, Islamic scholar Ahmad Omeirate spoke to IPPEN. MEDIA: "There is a great danger that radicalisation will lead to attacks from the jihadist scene." There were many signs: Islamist groups and hate preachers are making increasingly radical propaganda on social media – they want to lure young people in particular.
Islamic scholar Ahmad Omeirate. © Horst Galuschka/imago
Islamist attack on Christmas market and synagogue planned
The two youths from North Rhine-Westphalia and Brandenburg, who had exchanged information about attack targets in a Telegram chat, are 15 and 16 years old. They were provisionally detained on Wednesday. At first, it was unclear whether the boys only wanted to make themselves important or had serious plans. However, one of them had already announced a date: the crime was to take place on December 1, and the police intervened to be on the safe side.
It is typical that the two youths, at least one of whom is known to be a sympathizer of the terrorist militia Islamic State (IS), communicated via Telegram. The messenger is popular among adherents of extremist ideologies. After all, anti-Semitic or violence-glorifying content and fake news that are removed from other services often simply remain there, said extremism expert Johannes Hille recently in an interview with this editorial team.
Hate preachers and radical Islamists pour oil on the fire
Meanwhile, groups such as "Generation Islam" or "Muslim Interactive" are adding fuel to the fire: their Islamist propaganda videos are liked and shared tens of thousands of times. "The radical Islamists use mainstream platforms to reach as many people as possible," says Hillje, who has been studying forms of communication by extremists for years. "Their posts are meant to emotionalize, provoke a reaction, which in turn increases reach," he explains.
NRW Media Minister Liminski: "The biggest dirt slinger in the field of anti-Semitism is TikTok"
In the mails of the groups that, according to experts, are close to the banned Islamist movement Hizb ut-Tahrir, there is repeated mention of the "infidels" against whom one must defend oneself. The videos of the Islamists, in which they spread anti-Semitic messages, are highly professionally produced and adapted to the viewing habits of young consumers in particular: Hillje calls them "radicalized Islam-influencers." North Rhine-Westphalia Media Minister Nathanael Liminski (CDU) sees one particular platform in particular as a problem: "The biggest dirt slinger in the field of anti-Semitism is TikTok," he said in a recent interview with IPPEN. MEDIA. The number of anti-Semitic, hateful and violent content has risen rapidly there and in other social media since 7 October.
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The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) is very concerned about this: "The flood of digital images in social media, often paired with fake news, contributes to emotionalisation and can act as a radicalisation factor. The situation is exacerbated by foreign state actors who are trying to exploit or even intensify this mood for their own ends," says BfV President Thomas Haldenwang. He had "repeatedly emphasized that an Islamist attack can be carried out every day in Germany," Haldenwang said. "The danger is real and higher than it has been for a long time."