At a demonstration in Hanover, Germany, police had to stop a speech because of antisemitic statements. However, 150 protesters showed solidarity with the speaker and harassed the police.
According to police reports, antisemitic statements and attacks on police officers happened at a demonstration organised by the climate movement Fridays for Future (FFF) in Hannover, reports the Welt.
Police in Lower Saxony’s capital said that „antisemitic slogans and statements” were made at Friday’s march, first by participants and later by a speaker at the closing event. The case is under investigation for incitement against the community.
According to the police, they intervened in the ominous parts of the speech and stopped the speaker. However, when they tried to get the suspect off the stage to identify him, nearly 150 protesters stood in solidarity with him and harassed the police. A scuffle broke out, and „at least one physical assault on police officers” occurred. Meanwhile, the alleged speaker managed to escape.
Investigators claim that the suspect was part of a group of about 25 demonstrators who had previously shouted antisemitic slogans during the march through downtown Hanover. Members of the group managed to escape before police could subdue them.
According to police, around 1200 people participated in the Fridays for Future demonstration. The demonstration was linked to a climate strike called by the movement in the run-up to Sunday’s European Parliament elections and was also aimed at countering right-wing extremism. The police did not say exactly what antisemitic slogans and statements were made (in Germany, the infamous „From the River to the Sea” and similar slogans referring to genocide are banned.)
In the international climate movement, including the FFF, which bears the name of Greta Thunberg, hatred of Israel and antisemitism had already been present long before October 7. Based on an ‘intersectional’ ideology that seeks to link different forms of alleged victimhood, Israel’s climate policy is seen as ‘greenwashing’ the apartheid system it is accused of upholding, thus diverting attention from the alleged violations against Palestinians.
The FFF in Germany, however, has so far distanced itself from Thunbergs’ „anti-Zionist” messages, stressing that it only wants to deal with climate issues. Last summer, the FFF Bremen group disbanded. They were the ones who invited the antisemitic BDS campaign group, Palestine Speaks, to a demonstration in September 2022 to reaffirm their „anti-colonial solidarity with Palestine.” The Bremen FFF group was even criticised by the Greens for its antisemitism.
It is worth noting that Greta Thunberg herself has been making pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel statements since October 7. Days after the unprecedented Hamas attack and pogrom, the Swedish climate activist posed with a sign reading ‘Stand with Gaza’ and shared the scandal-ridden Bremen-based antisemitic BDS campaign Palestine Speaks’ call for action on Gaza. And in May, Thunberg was in Malmö to protest against Israeli singer Eden Golan’s Eurovision performance at a pro-Hamas demonstration.
More News
