GERMAN GOV’T WON‘T TOLERATE ANTI-SEMITIC RALLIES

After several German cities saw incidents at anti-Israel rallies in the wake of the resurging conflict between Israel and Gaza, the government strongly condemned anti-Semitic protests and promised to ramp up protection for Jewish institutions, Michael Fischer and Anne-Beatric Clasmann reported for Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa).

Government spokesperson Steffen Seibert said on Friday that peaceful demonstrations against Israel’s policies were allowed in Germany.

"But anyone who uses such protests to shout out their hatred of Jews is abusing the right to protest. Anti-Semitic rallies will not be tolerated by our democracy," he added.

Those who protest in front of a synagogue and damage Jewish symbols were not criticizing a state, but showed "aggression and hatred against a religion and those who belong to it," Seibert stressed.

"We oppose this with all the strength of a democratic constitutional state."

In recent days, police have intervened at anti-Israel rallies and boosted their presence at synagogues throughout the country after several instances of vandalism and the burning of Israeli flags.

Seibert said the authorities were working with the utmost commitment to solve the crimes, punish the perpetrators and protect Jewish institutions.

Earlier, the Israeli ambassador to Germany, Jeremy Issacharoff, called on the authorities to ensure the safety of the Jewish community, in comments to broadcaster ARD.

The president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, called on the broader German populace not to look the other way. "We expect citizens to stand up against this anti-Semitism! And loudly and publicly," he said, in comments to a party convention.

"Enough is enough!" The government’s anti-Semitism commissioner, Felix Klein, also asked Islamic associations in Germany to stand up against violence.

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