The following is the commentary by Johannes Boie,
Editor-in-Chief of the WELT AM SONNTAG

In recent days, I have witnessed the numerous attacks on Jewish places of worship, the clamour of mostly migrant demonstrators who pay homage to Hitler, approve of the Holocaust, call for the destruction of Israel and spread hatred of Jews. And I came to a sad realisation: perhaps it’s a matter of willingness. This state, this country, this government, this society may simply not want to eliminate anti-Semitism forever.

In Gelsenkirchen, young men with a migration background shouted “fucking Jew” in front of the synagogue, and across the country the threat “You Jews! Mohammed’s army will be back soon”. In Kreuzberg, the same mob openly demanded “attack Tel Aviv”; in Dresden, counter-demonstrators carrying Israeli flags were attacked. In Pankow, an Israeli flag was torched, in Würzburg one was torn from its pole. In Hanover, demonstrators tore up Israeli flags, in Solingen one burned. In Halle, demonstrators shouted “Takbir! Strike, strike Tel Aviv!”

These are people who feel encouraged in Germany to give free rein to their hatred of Jews. No wonder in a country where the Federal President congratulates the terrorist state of Iran on the “anniversary of the revolution”. In which a candidate for chancellor – Annalena Baerbock – publicly speaks out against supporting Israel with military technology. In which left-wing politicians show up supporting Jew-hatred demonstrations in Neukölln.

In which Ditib, an organisation of the Turkish president who is drifting into Islamism, is still not banned. In which the Social Democratic Party (SPD) parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich blames the country of Israel for anti-Semitic attacks in Germany. In which people pin a “Jewish star” to their chest because they think the government is behaving wrongly in the Corona crisis. In which the city of Hagen takes down an Israel flag that was hoisted to refer to the establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Germany on May 12, 1965, because a few Jew-haters wanted it that way. […]

A country where Hamas terrorists are reliably referred to as “activists” in numerous media: on n-tv, in the “Tagesschau”, on “Spiegel Online”, in the “FAZ”, in the “Tagesspiegel”, in the “Frankfurter Rundschau”…

“Spiegel Online” placed the reasonably clear statement of the German Foreign Minister (“Israel … has the right to self-defence”) without comment and without any context next to that of the Iranian counterpart, who spoke of “criminal acts” by Israel. His country also supplies the weapons fired at Israel, that was missing as a small hint.

The “shitty Jews” shouting in front of the synagogue in Gelsenkirchen was turned into an “anti-Israeli demonstration” by this media from Hamburg, as if it had not been anti-Semitism but a critical confrontation with the only democracy in the Middle East.

The news agency dpa also reported the event in Gelsenkirchen – and managed not to mention the milieus from which the hatred of Jews emanated. Later, the agency added to its report that it had “not yet been able to say much” about the demonstrators.

Similarly, the news programme “Tagesschau”: “Whether it was immigrants, if so, what religious or cultural background they have, or whether right-wing radicals were involved in the crime, we simply don’t know.” Yet videos had long been public showing a zillion and almost exclusively people with an immigrant background. Meanwhile, broadcaster Deutsche Welle interviewed a pro-Palestinian activist as an expert. A staff member of broadcaster WDR asked on Twitter: “Dear God, make the old philosemites dead”, to which his employer responded apologetically: “a private tweet” that was “exaggeratedly formulated”. An acquittal can be that simple.

These days, two milieus in particular complement each other: people who have learned from their childhood, whether it was in Neukölln or in the West Bank, that Israel is to be hated, that Jews are to be detested and attacked. And above all, left-wing politicians and media who negate this attitude, who talk down the problem and too often even secretly agree with it.

It is the same mostly left-wing negligence that has led to some neighbourhoods in Germany being controlled by clans (all from the same, anti-Semitic milieu). The stance is seconded by international stars: Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai spoke out unilaterally against Israel, Greta Thunberg too.

There are a few approaches that show that things can be done differently, could be done differently. In Bonn, citizens take turns to sit in front of the synagogue to make sure nothing happens. The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) had its Israeli flag stolen, but hung up a new one, unimpressed. And some Germans took to the streets on Saturday to show solidarity, if not with Israel, at least with German Jews. All this is good, right, impressive. But I am sceptical whether it is enough.

https://www.welt.de/debatte/kommentare/article231162615/Deutschland-ermuntert-die-Antisemiten-ihrem-Hass-freien-Lauf-zu-lassen.html

The Danish government is looking for ways to deter refugees seeking international protection and has come up with the idea of directing asylum seekers to countries outside the European continent. Danish MEPs are currently debating a bill that would allow the Scandinavian country to transfer responsibility for receiving applicants to a third country or several third countries, Le Monde reported.

The bill proposal states migrants would be registered upon arrival in Denmark, and authorities would take their fingerprints to check whether they have not applied for asylum in another EU country. They would then be seated on a plane to Africa where further application processes would be handled by third countries.

According to the RFI radio station, Denmark has tried to conclude an agreement with various countries, including Tunisia and Ethiopia, but negotiations with Rwanda look the most promising.

However, human rights organizations do not agree with the proposal, arguing that if other countries follow the Danish example, the right to asylum will be jeopardized. But Danish Migration Minister Mattias Tesfaye says the measure will be more humane than current processes because it will reduce the influx of refugees who risk their lives on dangerous migration routes for a better life. The initiative is also supported by a large part of the Danish population.

Danish Prime Minister and chairman of the Danish Social Democrats Mette Frederiksen, who, according to Le Monde, sought the votes of far-right party voters in the last election, pledged to curb migration in her election campaign.

Since 2019, when she became the prime minister, she has been tightening the country’s migration policy. In 2020, 1,547 people applied for asylum in Denmark, which is the lowest number since 1992. For comparison, according to data published by the Czech Ministry of the Interior, 1,922 people applied for international protection, or asylum protection, in the Czech Republic in 2019.

However, Frederiksen still found the number of applications lodged in Denmark last year to be too high. In January, she announced that her ambition is to reduce asylum applications in Denmark to zero. In April, Denmark was the first European country to decide not to renew the residence permit for Syrian refugees, explaining that part of Syrian territory was already safe enough for them to return home.

https://rmx.news/article/article/denmark-wants-to-send-asylum-seekers-to-africa

The Frankfurt professor Susanne Schröter is head of the Research Centre Global Islam. She accuses politicians of ignoring anti-Semitism in Muslim communities for years. In an interview with FOCUS Online, she explains, among other things, why the crime statistics for anti-Semitic offences are wrong.

FOCUS Online: Professor Schröter, against the backdrop of the Middle East conflict, riots and attacks on synagogues are on the rise in this country, what are we currently experiencing as a result of the protests ?

Susanne Schröter: Muslim anti-Semitism is manifesting itself here, which has always been ignored by the German public. Violence and incitement against Jews is not only rampant in the extreme right, but anti-Semitism is also growing in Muslim communities. But this is swept under the carpet.

In recent years, there have been repeated attacks by Muslims on Jews in the underground trains, or on Jewish children in schools. For fear of attacks, some Jews now refrain from wearing religious clothing in public. Unlike right-wing extremism, this dangerous development has never really been taken seriously.

What is behind this ?

Schröter: Some circles in culture and politics see Muslims as a victim group. This is what the term Islamophobia or anti-Muslim racism stands for. Ergo, victims cannot be perpetrators. Unfortunately, this mindset is also fuelled by scholars who come from postcolonial theory. These researchers explicitly emphasise that Muslims cannot be perpetrators because they are victims. This is an unrealistic view of things.

Why didn’t politics take up this anti-Semitism phenomenon earlier ?

Schröter: For many politicians and church representatives in particular, the topic is too hot. They always use the killer argument that a public discourse would only serve the AfD’s interests. And so the problem is no longer even discussed. But now we have the problem that there is extreme hostility towards Jews among Muslims. This is not so much criticism of the Israeli government’s measures, but rather an anti-Semitic mixture of politics and religion. This is not a new phenomenon.

When the Middle East conflict boiled up in 2014, young demonstrators on German streets threatened that the army of the Prophet Mohammed would return and destroy the Jews. With such slogans, reference is made to Islamic intellectual history. In some of Muhammad’s Koran verses and hadiths, there are passages that place Jews and Muslims in an absolute relationship of enmity. Immigration from the Arab civil war countries has further exacerbated this anti-Semitic attitude in this country. If politicians do not deal with the problem, it will continue to escalate until it gets out of hand.

However, the police statistics contradict their analysis, according to which almost 94 per cent of anti-Semitic crimes are the work of right-wing extremists.

Schröter: These statistics present a distorted image. The fact that the police attribute anti-Semitic crimes primarily to right-wing extremist circles is simply misleading. All cases where no perpetrator can be found are automatically attributed to right-wing extremism. This happens in about half of the registered anti-Jewish offences. This is the reason for the blatant overhang towards the right-wing. However, this statistic clearly contradicts the interviews with Jewish victims. I believe that the law enforcement agencies are pretty much in the dark here. But they do not take note of this.

What is in store for us?

Schröter: A few statements of consternation on the part of politicians will not be enough to make this anti-Semitic trend disappear. The riots and attacks on Jewish institutions will pop up again and again. Especially since Islamic organisations are also fuelling the hatred of Jews.

Which organisations are you referring to?

Schröter: For example, the state-controlled Turkish religious authority Diyanet and the umbrella organisation of Turkish-Islamic religious associations in Germany DITIB. On their Turkish home pages, there is currently a large-scale propaganda against Israel and the Jews. Suddenly you feel like you’re in a holy war.

How widespread is anti-Semitism in the left camp ?

Schröter: There has been latent anti-Semitism in the left spectrum for decades. This goes back to the terrorist group RAF in the 1970s and other radical left movements that allied themselves with militant Palestinian groups. In the case of assassinations or hostage-taking, Jewish victims were sometimes specifically singled out.

Ok, that was once, what is the current situation ?

Schröter: I would distinguish between two groups of activists who position themselves against Israel. One group consists of ideological hardliners who basically glorify Palestinian organisations as a “liberation movement” and deny Israel the right to exist. They themselves show solidarity with Islamofascist groups such as Hamas. These actors can be found above all in the BDS movement, which demonises Israel and its citizens and calls for a boycott. They are convinced left-wing anti-Semites.

A second group is driven by taking the side of the supposedly weak. These are often young people who act primarily emotionally but have only a rudimentary knowledge of the Middle East conflict, which is not exactly easy to understand. Perhaps a better education would save them from some naïve partisanship. If they knew that Hamas, in its charter, not only seeks the annihilation of the state of Israel, but also the annihilation of all Jews, some people might start to think.

https://www.focus.de/kultur/gesellschaft/folgen-des-nahost-konflikts-dfdf_id_13299126.html

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has cancelled a visit to Vienna planned for today, Saturday, to meet Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg ( Austrian People’s Party). The reason for this, he said, was that the Federal Chancellery and Foreign Ministry had hoisted the Israeli flag on Friday in the recent Middle East conflict between Israel and Hamas. Schallenberg spokesperson Claudia Türtscher confirmed a corresponding report by the newspaper “Presse” (online) to the press agency APA on Saturday.

https://www.noen.at/in-ausland/wegen-israel-fahne-irans-aussenminister-sagt-wien-besuch-ab-bundesregierung-int-beziehungen-konflikte-nahost-wien-273915034#

There is an accumulation of cases that worries many citizens and experts alike. In Cologne, at least 1789 people tested positive for Corona – after their vaccination. The head of the city health department is also concerned about this development.

According to the official figures, 394 060 people had received their first vaccination against Corona in Cologne by Wednesday. On May 12, 2611 people tested positive. On Sunday (May 9) there were 3444 people. The explosive factor however is that 1789 of those infected with the Corona virus had previously received a vaccination.

The German tabloid, the Bild Zeitung reported that 1335 people had an infection – as of Sunday – despite a first vaccination and 454 despite a second vaccination. Thus, half of the Corona infections reported in Cologne have been due to people who have already been vaccinated.

The head of the health department, Johannes Nießen, tried to placate all those concerned and emphasized that people who are infected despite being vaccinated usually only have a mild course of the disease, but he is nevertheless worried. He explained: “It is not normal that you get infected despite being vaccinated. These numbers worry me.”

He said thus far only a fraction of those fully vaccinated would become infected with the virus. “As long as there are so few, the events can be handled. We are continuing to monitor the situation, but these cases have not yet had any impact on our vaccination plan,” said the head of the health department.

The Robert Koch Institute stated that the vaccines were “very effective” but conceded that an infection could occur despite the vaccination, since the vaccination does not offer 100 percent protection. In addition, the first dose of vaccine only takes effect until ten to 14 days after it was administered and full protection would not exist until around two weeks after the second vaccination.

The currently assumed protective effect of the different Corona vaccines ranges from 95 percent for Biontech/Pfizer, 94 percent for Moderna to 70 to 86 percent for AstraZeneca and 66 to 85 percent for the vaccine from Johnson and Johnson. However, statistical evaluations have already shown that with a high vaccination rate, the Corona cases and the number of deaths also increase.

Yale professor Harvey Risch, a renowned infectologist at the US elite university, has claimed that the majority of the new Corona cases have already received a vaccination.

Risch is considered a prominent and well-informed critic of the official Corona narrative in the US. In this role he has now appeared on the program War Room. While American citizens were won over by the claim that self-protection against infection after a vaccination is between 60 and 90 percent, this may not be the case. It is now apparent that many people still show positive Covid-19 test results despite a vaccination. Risch referred to the fact that doctors in clinics confirmed to him that more than half of all new Corona cases were vaccinated: “They estimate that more than 60 percent of the new patients they treat already have had a vaccination against the Coronavirus.”

Large pharmaceutical companies have not provided any data concerning the only important question of whether the vaccination protects against the spread of the virus.  One therefore has to look empirically at those countries where vaccinations are most widely used: The Seychelles and Israel are two prime examples.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would be the first country to exit the Corona crisis. Israel has given at least one dose of the vaccine to more than half its population, boasting the title of most vaccinated country in the world. Despite this, no increased immunity has been noted. On the contrary: since the vaccinations began, the number of Corona infections in Israel seems to have exploded.

Netanyahu even advised the Austrian Ministry of Health in December by order of Chancellor Kurz. Like Austria, Israel has a population of around nine million. In terms of the number of people vaccinated, the Jewish state is far ahead.

While vaccinations have hardly started in Austria, the number of those who have tested positive has been falling steadily since November. In Israel, the numbers rose exponentially with the start of vaccination in mid-December.

Four people have already died in Israel as a result of being vaccinated with the mRNA vaccine. Hundreds of people also suffered from side effects, some of them severe. If one looks at the development of the Israeli infection numbers, the vaccination does not seem to have any positive influence on the infection process. This raises the question of whether the vaccination makes sense on the one hand and, on the other hand, the question of whether it is ethically justified to expose people to an additional health risk through vaccinations.

https://freewestmedia.com/2021/05/15/almost-1800-people-in-cologne-infected-after-vaccination/

The Israeli Consulate General in Munich (Israel in Munich) received a message via Facebook announcing the murder and rape of Jews.
The author of the message described himself as a Syrian citizen living in Germany who, in view of the events in Jerusalem, had decided to form a group with other Syrians and Palestinians to “support our brothers and sisters in Palestine”.

The message reads, among other things: “Now it is time for you to leave Palestine and let us live in peace. You are the cause of terror in the world. In the next few days, we as a group will start what Hitler started: Burning your citizens and embassies in Europe.”
Further on, the abduction and rape of women is explicitly announced.

It continues: “We will burn you like Hitler did to your race”, “Your faith is a lie” and “Allah Akbar”.
The consulate reported the incident to RIAS Bayern, filed a complaint and published the post.

https://www.facebook.com/RIASBayern/posts/1050200522054762?cft[0]=AZVIS2Rvd05kWRQRJOFwYfjJssVPWOt-tPTRrra4sT2yc07G4xVLPbGKpOHK5iGd04jamu0l6WpUMTfugdsEq0pyH2RWBudZcBmOURt445CXW1fp64IVddUolP301thhd3npk_3DJoZZ-WSYxrM2WlmQmE_tcQdMJQFGDhHrA6FvCg&tn=%2CO%2CP-y-R

The extent to which people are affected by the latest escalation in the Middle East conflict was shown in Vienna on Wednesday evening. Around 2,500 people took to the streets to protest against Israel’s military action.

During the rally on Mariahilfer Street, anti-Semitic chants could be heard, flags of the Palestinian terror organisation Hamas could be seen, and banners were used to deny the Holocaust. It was one of the biggest anti-Semitic rallies in recent years. “This is not political criticism, but anti-Semitic incitement,” commented the writer Doron Rabinovici on Twitter.

Shortly after the march had started, shouts such as “Israel child murderer” or “Chaiber, Chaiber (anti-Semitic massacre, note), oh, you Jews, Mohammed’s army will be back soon” could be heard. In addition, there was an open call for a new Intifada, i.e. a violent uprising against Israel. In addition to numerous young people, almost the entire Islamist spectrum of the capital was represented, including supporters of Hamas, people from the so-called “Islamic State” and the Muslim Brotherhood.

People close to the Grey Wolves or Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Turkish party AKP could also be spotted. Viennese AKP activists openly support Hamas’ rocket attacks on Israel via Facebook.

They were joined by activists from left-wing splinter groups who railed against Zionism, propagated a new Intifada or chanted slogans. People from the group “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” (BDS) were also present. With its campaigns, the group tries to isolate the state of Israel economically, culturally and politically.

https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000126632516/anti-israel-demo-in-wien-mitantisemitische-sprechchoeren-und-terrorfahnen

Will there soon be real consequences for open hatred against Jews in Germany?

Alexander Dobrindt, head of the Christian Social Union (CSU) parliamentary group, is calling for a tough stance: he is calling for prison sentences for anti-Semitic offences!

This is simply a matter of applying existing laws consistently, Dobrindt explained. For the burning of flags is punishable by up to two years in prison. “This range of punishment must be used to make it unmistakably clear: Hatred of Jews and anti-Semitism have no place in Germany,” Dobrindt told the newspaper BILD.

Dobrindt told BILD: “The hatred against Jews and against Israel, as shown in Münster, Bonn or Gelsenkirchen, is frightening and shameful. Anyone who chants anti-Semitic slogans or burns the Israeli flag must be subjected to the maximum severity of the constitutional state and punished with imprisonment.”

There is plenty of reason for his demand these days. On Thursday, during an anti-Semitic hate march in front of a synagogue in Gelsenkirchen, demonstrators had collectively shouted “Shit Jews” and other slogans – the security forces present did not stop them.

The fear is that similar events could happen again this weekend – or take on even worse consequences. Because Israel-haters are planning marches in many cities in Germany.

On the anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel, pro-Palestinian groups want to celebrate the counter-anniversary under the name “Nakba” Day. Demonstrations have been announced for Saturday in various German cities (including Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Freiburg).

https://www.bild.de/politik/inland/politik-inland/dobrindt-wer-israel-flaggen-verbrennt-soll-in-den-knast-76392782.bild.html

A Swedish multicultural food store has landed itself in hot water. In an attempt to present itself as open to Muslims, they chose to wish believers “Happy Ramadan!” on a flyer. The only problem was that the advertisement was adorned with meat in the form of a Swedish pork chop. “We hope that those who have taken it badly can be generous and forgiving,” the store repented.

The curious picture was noticed by liberal opinion leader Joel Halldorf at Swedish daily Expressen. He is also an associate professor of church history and Halldorf was upset when he saw the picture, because it offends Muslims.

“Happy Ramadan with a pork chop… This is the level of religious illiteracy in this country”, wrote Halldorf and posted the picture.

Several Swedish liberals commented on the picture in the thread, and were convinced that it was fake. “I retweeted you, but on second thought: this CANNOT be true,” wrote Anders Lindberg at another daily Aftonbladet.

“Was it a fake image or a true advertisement? Absolutely incredibly crass in that case,” commented Helle Klein on Dagens Arbete.

After a day of intensive work to find out if the picture was genuine or a joke, incredulous leftists had to come to terms with reality: The picture of the pork chop was not fake.

“The mystery of the Ramadan chop has been solved: the picture was genuine, a misprint from the store that took it down and apologized. Stress plus a dose of religious illiteracy feels like a reasonable explanation,” tweeted Halldorf, and attached a response from the store in which they acknowledge their faux pas.

“Unfortunately, it was a misprint and we apologize so much to those who took it badly. The sign has been taken down and we have taken measures to prevent it from happening again,” wrote an employee at the store.

On the store’s Facebook page it also apologized in a long post to everyone who had taken offence. “The food store distances itself from all forms of discrimination. We hope that those who have taken it badly can be generous and forgiving.”

In the comments section, previously upset Muslims expressed gratitude. “Great full”[misspelling of grateful], writes Mohammad. “Best,” writes Talip and gets a heart back from the store.

According to the Quran, pork is considered “haram”, forbidden food, just as for Jews. Ramadan takes place between April 12 and May 12.

https://freewestmedia.com/2021/05/14/swedish-grocery-store-welcomes-muslim-customers-with-pork-chop/