Merkel vows to fight anti-Semitism at home

Germany will do all it can to fight anti-Semitism, chancellor Angela Merkel said in a speech on Sunday, following a surge of abuse against Jews and spreading anti-Israeli sentiment aroused by the Gaza conflict.

Dr Merkel made her pledge to thousands at a landmark rally protesting a rise in anti-Semitism that authorities and Jewish leaders blame mainly on Muslim extremists and young immigrants, saying anyone who attacks Jews is attacking all of Germany.

“That people in Germany are threatened and abused because of their Jewish appearance or their support for Israel is an outrageous scandal that we won’t accept,” Merkel said. “It’s our national and civic duty to fight anti-Semitism.”

The chancellor only rarely attends demonstrations, but yesterday she joined German president Joachim Gauck and Jewish community leaders for the rally at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin.

“Anyone who hits someone wearing a skullcap is hitting us all,” Dr Merkel said. “Anyone who damages a Jewish gravestone is disgracing our culture. Anyone who attacks a synagogue is attacking the foundations of our free society.”

Low profile

The rally itself, organised by the Central Council of Jews in Germany, was extraordinary. Jews in Germany generally keep a low profile, but community leaders have said Jews were feeling threatened by anti-Semitism after the Gaza conflict.

More than half a million Jews lived in Germany when the Nazis took power in 1933. That number was reduced to about 30,000 by the Holocaust. The population has since grown to about 200,000 – a source of pride for Dr Merkel and many Germans.

The German government said 131 anti-Semitic incidents were reported in July and 53 in June. That was up from a total of 159 in the second quarter. Dr Merkel said authorities would use all means at hand to fight anti-Semitism.

“That far more than 100,000 Jews are now living in Germany is something of a miracle,” the chancellor said in an unusually personal speech. “It’s a gift and it fills me with a deepest gratitude.

“Jewish life is part of our identity and culture. It hurts me when I hear that young Jewish parents are asking if it’s safe to raise their children here or the elderly ask if it was right to stay here.”

The Gaza conflict between Palestine and Israel has caused tension to flare between local Muslim and Jewish populations across Europe. Anti-Semitic chants and threats marred pro-Palestinian protests in France, Germany, and Italy in July.

In France, the French office of the American Jewish Committee said last week that French Interior Ministry figures showed there had been a 91 per cent increase in anti-Semitic incidents, to 527 from January 1st to July 31st. – (Reuters)