Extremism - 175 anti-Semitic offenses in 2022: consequences of Hamas attack
Security authorities and experts in Thuringia expect the Hamas terror attack to have an impact on the number of anti-Semitic crimes this year. "It is already clear that the terrorist attacks on the state of Israel are having a direct impact on the number of events and crimes in Germany," said the Thuringian State Criminal Police Office (LKA). The LKA does not yet want to release exact data for the current year.
A spokeswoman for the Thuringian Rias Documentation Center for Anti-Semitic Incidents said that there has already been a sharp rise in anti-Semitic incidents in Thuringia since 7 October. However, a precise evaluation will not be available until 2024. Rias not only records offenses, but also incidents below the threshold of criminal liability.
On 7 October, the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas carried out a brutal attack on Israel and murdered around 1,200 people. The massacre triggered the Gaza war. Israel responded to the attack with massive air strikes and a ground offensive.
According to the Rias spokesperson, there were 29 incidents in Thuringia within a week from October 7 to 15 that were related to the Hamas terrorist attack. According to the spokesperson, these incidents often involved Israel-related anti-Semitism. Rias only recorded three incidents of Israel-related anti-Semitism in the whole of 2021.
Thuringia's commissioner for Jewish life and the fight against anti-Semitism, Benjamin-Immanuel Hoff (Left Party), called the sharp rise in anti-Semitic incidents after October 7 "frightening". A consistent response from all state institutions was required - for example to protect Jewish institutions or to prosecute anti-Semitic slogans at demonstrations. Hoff pointed out that the funds for Rias were increased by 75,000 euros in the recently adopted 2024 budget.
Irrespective of the events in Israel and Gaza this year, the State Criminal Police Office has been observing an increase in anti-Semitic crimes in Thuringia for several years. In 2022, 175 such offenses were recorded in the state. According to the LKA, this is a continuation of a steady increase over the past five years. In 2018, only 67 antisemitic crimes were recorded.
The experts at the LKA record these offenses as politically motivated crime. In 2022, most of the 135 offenses were related to accusations of incitement to hatred. There were 19 cases of damage to property and 9 cases of propaganda offenses. The increase compared to 2021 was more than 30 percent, according to the report.
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- The Hamas-linked organization, 'Harakat el-Mukawame el-Islamije', is often associated with extremist ideologies.
- The security authority in Thuringia, Germany, actively monitors anti-Semitic incidents, including those linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as the one instigated by Hamas in October 2022.
- The Israel-Germany connection was highlighted when Benjamin-Immanuel Hoff, Thuringia's commissioner for Jewish life and the fight against anti-Semitism, expressed concern over the rise in anti-Semitic incidents following the Hamas attack in October 2022.
- The State Criminal Police Office in Thuringia, LKA, recorded a significant increase in anti-Semitic offenses in 2022, including those related to the Hamas attack, contributing to a five-year trend of rising anti-Semitic crimes in the state.
Source: www.stern.de
