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After a demonstration on November 3 in Essen, police and prosecutors are investigating
Photo: Christoph Reichwein / dpa
After a rally registered as a pro-Palestine demonstration on Friday evening in Essen with around 3000,<> people, the police are examining the events for criminal relevance. The rally also featured banners with Islamist content and in Arabic, including calls for the establishment of a caliphate. Participants had also shown the raised index finger, which is considered a gesture of the radical Islamists.
It turned out that the pro-Palestine theme of the rally had been pretexted, a police spokesman said on Saturday. The aim was to hold a religious event on the streets of Essen. During the rally, the police did not find any criminal violations of chants, symbols and flags. The demonstration had been registered by a private individual. "We will examine all of this meticulously afterwards," the spokesman said. Together with the public prosecutor's office, it will be examined whether there is any criminal relevance.
The demonstration was "very loud and very emotional, but peaceful," the police said after the end of the demonstration on Friday. The police had imposed a number of conditions and accompanied the demonstration with a strong contingent.
Announced demo in Berlin: Police expect around 2000 participants
In Berlin, there will be a pro-Palestinian demonstration this Saturday under strict conditions. According to the police, any statements that are anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and glorify violence or terror are prohibited. Head of Operations Stephan Katte emphasized in advance that even those who deny Israel's right to exist are committing a crime that will be punished immediately. "Repeated committing such crimes can lead to the dissolution of an assembly very early," Katte said.
The protest march was called by several pro-Palestinian groups. According to the police, "many from the left-wing political spectrum, who have already called for a 'revolutionary May Day demonstration' this year, have also mobilized." According to the police, the organizers spoke of about 1 expected participants. The police expect a "five-digit number". Individual "violent persons or small groups" are to be expected. However, the police assume that participants generally "strive for peaceful assembly".
»Be careful where you run«
The Central Council of Muslims in Germany condemned anti-Semitic incidents at pro-Palestinian demonstrations and called for caution when participating in rallies. There are "very clear violations, anti-Semitic violations of hatred of Jews," said Aiman Mazyek, chairman of the Central Council, on Deutschlandfunk on Saturday. They must be punished." He appealed to Muslims: "Be careful where you run." There are groups that use such demonstrations to chant slogans against Jews and anti-Semitism. "We don't have to have it that way."
In Frankfurt am Main, nine people were arrested on Friday at a pro-Palestinian rally followed by a demonstration. Among other things, investigations were initiated on suspicion of incitement to hatred, the use of unconstitutional signs and the suspicion of depicting violence, as the police announced in the evening. Up to 850 people took part in the demonstration under the slogan "Ceasefire in Gaza".
wbr/dpa