Antisemitic Violence and Demonstrations in Berlin

Almost one hundred years after Nazism, virulent Jew-hatred plagues Germany

Today we focus on antisemitism in Germany.

We just published on our YouTube channel a half-hour piece on the regular and often violent anti-Israel (and antisemitic) demonstrations that are held at least twice weekly in Berlin. I spent a week in Germany in February, and this is the first of several reports you will receive in the coming weeks.

My interest in Germany is somewhat obsessive and longstanding. All that has waned in recent decades is my facility with the language. (That happens with disuse.)

I am also of the view that Germany will be the most important country in determining the policy course taken by continental Europe regarding many critical issues. This is for the simple reason that Germany is the most populous and largest country on the continent in terms of land mass (excluding Russia, of course, which is half Europe, half Asia).

The last few decades have seen Germany commit to some very narrow-minded policy positions. In the 90s, German leadership decided that after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Communism was dead. The Cold War was over. And Russia was no longer and would never again be a threat. Germany put in place a very aggressive program to shut down its coal and nuclear power facilities, making it totally dependent on Russia for supply. It also drastically reduced defense spending.

Russia is no longer considered to be a friend. At the outbreak of the war with Ukraine, there was a mad panic in Germany and elsewhere about Russia turning off the oil and gas taps. Suddenly, energy dependence on Russia was not such a great idea. Furthermore, the belief in a demilitarized Europe—as a result of peace with a more moderate, western Russia—led Germany to eviscerate the minimal military capability it had allowed itself after WWII. Finally, in an effort to make amends for its murderous policies in the last century, Germany opened its country to millions of “migrants”. Many of these newcomers are from Muslim-majority countries. And they have brought with them a very toxic antisemitism.

Germans are haunted by their fascist past and frozen as to how to deal with the surge in fundamentalist Islam in their society. This was a major issue in the last federal election campaign, which was held on February 23. In the coming weeks we will look at the key issues in that election and the growing support nationally for the Alternative fur Deutschland party, which many brand as neo-Nazi.

One of the many issues we will explore in the coming weeks is why support for AfD is on the rise.

This episode takes a close look at one week of antisemitic and anti-Israel demonstrations in Berlin, some of which have attracted international attention due to the violence. Unlike in the last century, German police today protect Israel and Jewish people. The irony of the powerful Islamist threat against Jews that is so strong in Germany is not lost on anyone.

Tune into our YouTube show here:

Thanks for being here. Have a restorative weekend. Shabbat shalom,

Vivian Bercovici

Berlin, February 2025