Rallies in a number of German cities took place against the backdrop of the worsening Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They were stopped by police
A wave of anti-Israeli rallies took place in Germany against the backdrop of the worsening Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This was reported by DW on Friday, May 14.
In particular, in the evening of 12 May in the city of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, around 180 demonstrators tried to march through the city centre towards the synagogue. Some shouted anti-Semitic slogans. The police used batons and no injuries were reported.
On the same day, police stopped an anti-Israel demonstration in the centre of Hannover due to a lack of compliance with anti-epidemic measures. Some 550 people took part in the demonstration, many of them without masks. Two protesters attempted to burn Israeli flags, but the police prevented them from doing so.
Also in Berlin, two unidentified men stole an Israeli flag hoisted outside the headquarters of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party. In Berlin’s Pankow district, unknown persons set fire to a rubbish bin near the town hall in order to burn the Israeli flag hanging on the building, but firefighters arrived at the scene in time.
Finally, in the city of Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, on the night of May 13, an unidentified person smashed a synagogue window. Police are now investigating and have stepped up their presence outside Jewish institutions. The burgomaster of Mannheim and the chairman of the local Jewish community have condemned the attack.
Israel has reportedly launched a ground attack on the Gaza Strip with the support of the air force. According to the head of the Jewish state’s government, “the last word has not been spoken”.