Anti-Semitism fears rise in Germany after attempted arson at Berlin synagogue
Attackers hurled two Molotov cocktails at a Jewish community centre housing a synogogue in Berlin early Wednesday, police said, as Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to fight anti-Semitism on German soil.
Police in the German capital said they were probing the attack in the central Mitte district of the city. There were no reports of injuries or damage.
The attack, at around 3:45am, comes amid a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the wake of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
"Two unidentified people arrived on foot and threw two burning bottles filled with liquid in the direction of the synagogue on Brunnenstrasse," a commercial and residential street in Berlin's central Mitte district, police said in a statement.
The attacked building houses various institutions including the synagogue of the Kahal Adass Yisroel association, rooms of a Talmud-Thora school and a Kita (day-care centre).
State security is investigating the incident as attempted aggravated arson.
There were no injuries, according to police. The incendiary bottles apparently hit the pavement outside the centre but missed the building itself.
As the masked assailants fled by foot, round-the-clock security forces stationed outside noticed a "small fire" where the attackers had been standing and were able to put it out, "preventing further consequences".
While police were investigating at around 8 am, a 30-year-old man on an e-scooter stopped outside the synagogue and tried to approach the building.
When police moved in to stop him, he resisted and began shouting anti-Israel slogans.
Police said they released the man but have opened a probe against him on charges of incitement of racial hatred and an attempted attack on an officer.
"I feel more insecure here than in Israel," Shlomo Rottman from Jerusalem, who is currently attending a rabbinical seminar at the synagogue, told Berlin's Tagesspiegel.
Rottman also told the newspaper that he had observed a man filming all the buildings, including the synagogue, on the street on Tuesday. He then called the police, who explained to him that filming was not forbidden there.
"I am shocked," Rottman said. "I came from the war in Israel and thought I was safe in Germany. Now I feel more unsafe here than in Israel.”
The building belongs to Kahal Adass Jisroel, which calls itself as "a growing Jewish community in the heart of Berlin".
On social media, it described the target of the attack as a "community centre" and confirmed that "people and the building, fortunately, were unharmed".
Attacks 'cannot be tolerated'
Without addressing the incident specifically, Scholz posted a message on X condemning anti-Jewish hatred.
"Attacks against Jewish institutions, violent riots on our streets -- this is inhumane, disgusting and cannot be tolerated," said Scholz, currently on a trip to Egypt.
"Anti-Semitism has no place in Germany. My thanks go to the security forces, especially in this situation."
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the protection of Jewish institutions in Germany had "the highest priority", calling the attempted firebombing a "despicable act".
READ ALSO: German Chancellor Scholz terrified by Gaza hospital blast on Middle East trip
A police union and local media reported clashes between demonstrators and police late Tuesday at pro-Palestinian rallies in Berlin in the wake of Hamas's deadly October 7th attack on Israel, and a devastating rocket attack on a hospital in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday for which both Israel and Hamas have denied responsibility.
Scholz had last week called on his compatriots to show solidarity with the country's Jewish population and guarantee their safety, condemning incidents at pro-Palestinian rallies, which have been largely banned since Hamas' initial attack.
Germany has stepped up protection at Jewish institutions across the country, citing its solemn responsibility for Jewish life since the Holocaust.
Other incidents around Berlin
In Berlin on Tuesday evening, after a pro-Palestine vigil at the Brandenburg Gate, police reported that emergency forces were attacked.
Police said more than 300 people had gathered there, while a DPA photographer estimated the number at around 1,000. After several loudspeaker requests to leave the place, the unauthorised gathering was dispersed.
Police disperse a vigil in solidarity with Palestine at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Paul Zinken
The nearby Holocaust Memorial had to be protected by police officers. According to media reports, demonstrators had tried to get there but were prevented from doing so.
In the Berlin district of Neukölln, there were riots after a call for an unregistered pro-Palestine demonstration. Barricades, e-scooters and a children's playground were set on fire, the fire brigade announced on X.
Their forces were fired upon with pyrotechnics. The police were attacked with stones. Two police officers had to be treated by the emergency services.
Pro-Palestinian rallies around Germany
There were also pro-Palestinian rallies in several cities in North Rhine-Westphalia with a total of more than 500 participants.
The largest number of participants was in Aachen, with 200, according to police reports last night. Around 100 people each took to the streets in Dortmund, Düsseldorf and Essen, Cologne reported 30 people.
According to the police, the demonstrations were peaceful. Some demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and candles.
READ ALSO: Frankfurt book fair sees several publishers withdraw amid Israel-Hamas tensions
In Baden-Württemberg, there were rallies in Stuttgart and Mannheim with 40 to 60 participants. Some Palestinian flags were displayed, but the protests were also peaceful.
"I appeal to everyone, despite the conflict, worries and emotions, to participate only in peaceful protest and not to commit crimes," Berlin Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) said on Wednesday.
"There is no justification for bringing hate to Berlin. There is no justification to insult, threaten, attack others.
"Anyone who decides to do this is attacking the very foundations of our togetherness and must be aware that as a state under the rule of law we will oppose this relentlessly."
Even before the latest turmoil in the Middle East, Germany in May reported a new record in the number of politically motivated crimes last year, including a nearly 29-percent jump in anti-Semitic crimes to 3,027.
The vast majority of the offences -- 2,552 -- were attributed to the far-right scene.
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Police in the German capital said they were probing the attack in the central Mitte district of the city. There were no reports of injuries or damage.
The attack, at around 3:45am, comes amid a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the wake of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
"Two unidentified people arrived on foot and threw two burning bottles filled with liquid in the direction of the synagogue on Brunnenstrasse," a commercial and residential street in Berlin's central Mitte district, police said in a statement.
The attacked building houses various institutions including the synagogue of the Kahal Adass Yisroel association, rooms of a Talmud-Thora school and a Kita (day-care centre).
State security is investigating the incident as attempted aggravated arson.
There were no injuries, according to police. The incendiary bottles apparently hit the pavement outside the centre but missed the building itself.
As the masked assailants fled by foot, round-the-clock security forces stationed outside noticed a "small fire" where the attackers had been standing and were able to put it out, "preventing further consequences".
While police were investigating at around 8 am, a 30-year-old man on an e-scooter stopped outside the synagogue and tried to approach the building.
When police moved in to stop him, he resisted and began shouting anti-Israel slogans.
Police said they released the man but have opened a probe against him on charges of incitement of racial hatred and an attempted attack on an officer.
"I feel more insecure here than in Israel," Shlomo Rottman from Jerusalem, who is currently attending a rabbinical seminar at the synagogue, told Berlin's Tagesspiegel.
Rottman also told the newspaper that he had observed a man filming all the buildings, including the synagogue, on the street on Tuesday. He then called the police, who explained to him that filming was not forbidden there.
"I am shocked," Rottman said. "I came from the war in Israel and thought I was safe in Germany. Now I feel more unsafe here than in Israel.”
The building belongs to Kahal Adass Jisroel, which calls itself as "a growing Jewish community in the heart of Berlin".
On social media, it described the target of the attack as a "community centre" and confirmed that "people and the building, fortunately, were unharmed".
Attacks 'cannot be tolerated'
Without addressing the incident specifically, Scholz posted a message on X condemning anti-Jewish hatred.
"Attacks against Jewish institutions, violent riots on our streets -- this is inhumane, disgusting and cannot be tolerated," said Scholz, currently on a trip to Egypt.
"Anti-Semitism has no place in Germany. My thanks go to the security forces, especially in this situation."
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the protection of Jewish institutions in Germany had "the highest priority", calling the attempted firebombing a "despicable act".
READ ALSO: German Chancellor Scholz terrified by Gaza hospital blast on Middle East trip
A police union and local media reported clashes between demonstrators and police late Tuesday at pro-Palestinian rallies in Berlin in the wake of Hamas's deadly October 7th attack on Israel, and a devastating rocket attack on a hospital in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday for which both Israel and Hamas have denied responsibility.
Scholz had last week called on his compatriots to show solidarity with the country's Jewish population and guarantee their safety, condemning incidents at pro-Palestinian rallies, which have been largely banned since Hamas' initial attack.
Germany has stepped up protection at Jewish institutions across the country, citing its solemn responsibility for Jewish life since the Holocaust.
Other incidents around Berlin
In Berlin on Tuesday evening, after a pro-Palestine vigil at the Brandenburg Gate, police reported that emergency forces were attacked.
Police said more than 300 people had gathered there, while a DPA photographer estimated the number at around 1,000. After several loudspeaker requests to leave the place, the unauthorised gathering was dispersed.
The nearby Holocaust Memorial had to be protected by police officers. According to media reports, demonstrators had tried to get there but were prevented from doing so.
In the Berlin district of Neukölln, there were riots after a call for an unregistered pro-Palestine demonstration. Barricades, e-scooters and a children's playground were set on fire, the fire brigade announced on X.
Their forces were fired upon with pyrotechnics. The police were attacked with stones. Two police officers had to be treated by the emergency services.
Pro-Palestinian rallies around Germany
There were also pro-Palestinian rallies in several cities in North Rhine-Westphalia with a total of more than 500 participants.
The largest number of participants was in Aachen, with 200, according to police reports last night. Around 100 people each took to the streets in Dortmund, Düsseldorf and Essen, Cologne reported 30 people.
According to the police, the demonstrations were peaceful. Some demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and candles.
READ ALSO: Frankfurt book fair sees several publishers withdraw amid Israel-Hamas tensions
In Baden-Württemberg, there were rallies in Stuttgart and Mannheim with 40 to 60 participants. Some Palestinian flags were displayed, but the protests were also peaceful.
"I appeal to everyone, despite the conflict, worries and emotions, to participate only in peaceful protest and not to commit crimes," Berlin Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) said on Wednesday.
"There is no justification for bringing hate to Berlin. There is no justification to insult, threaten, attack others.
"Anyone who decides to do this is attacking the very foundations of our togetherness and must be aware that as a state under the rule of law we will oppose this relentlessly."
Even before the latest turmoil in the Middle East, Germany in May reported a new record in the number of politically motivated crimes last year, including a nearly 29-percent jump in anti-Semitic crimes to 3,027.
The vast majority of the offences -- 2,552 -- were attributed to the far-right scene.
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