The Post article reports that police shut down the conference “about a minute into playing a video message” from Palestinian author Salman Abu Sitta — Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta’s uncle — who said:
“We have never seen before all means of life systematically destroyed: hospitals, clinics, schools, universities, libraries, ancient monuments, mosques, universities, cemeteries, apartment buildings.”
The police said it shut down the conference because 86-year-old Salman Abu Sitta was “forbidden from being politically active in Germany.” In the past he was believed to have made “antisemitic and violence-glorifying remarks.” In a January blog post, for example, Salman Abu Sitta wrote that he “could have been one of those who broke through the fence” if he were younger and still lived “in the concentration camp called the Gaza Strip.”
The Berlin Mayor praised the police actions. “We have made it clear which rules apply in Berlin,” he tweeted. “We have made it clear that hatred of Israel has no place in Berlin. Anyone who does not abide by these rules will feel the consequences.”
According to the Post article, the chairman of Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East, which co-organized the event, said the organizers of the conference had not been informed that Salman Abu Sitta was under a speaking ban. Two of the group were detained, he said, including one who held up a “Jews against genocide” sign outside the event in the morning.
Police knew of the conference in advance, and they told organizers on the morning of the event that fire regulations would permit only 250 persons to attend instead of the more than 500 planning to be there.
The article explains the background of what happened to Dr. Abu Sitta and the conference:
Germany has thrown full support behind Israel during its war in Gaza, with the country’s security seen as paramount to the state given Germany’s Holocaust history. It is the second largest arms supplier to Israel after the United States, with Nicaragua lodging a case at the International Court of Justice earlier this month alleging that Germany is aiding genocide through its deliveries. Berlin has called the case “grossly biased.”
In addition to Germany’s support for the war, there is what officials describe as a “zero tolerance” stance toward antisemitism, which in practice has affected tolerance of pro-Palestinian expression. The article says:
The slogan “Free Palestine” has been banned in Berlin schools, while a slew of exhibitions and events have been closed over the Palestinian sympathies of artists.
In February, Israeli filmmaker Yuval Abraham caused a firestorm at the Berlin International Film Festival after he called for a cease-fire in Gaza and criticized Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.
The article reports that after returning to Britain, Dr. Abu Sitta joined a demonstration at the German embassy in London and said his lawyers would be in touch with the German authorities. He added that what happened to him at the Berlin airport was nothing compared to what is happening in Gaza. In his words:
“When you see what they are doing to the people in Gaza, this is nothing.”
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Note: An announcement of the conference in Berlin on April 12-14 can be seen here in German and English (scroll to the bottom for English). It includes an analysis of the need for change in German policies regarding Israel and Gaza.