Germany’s small Jewish community has sounded an alarm over the escalation of neo-Nazi violence, especially in former East Germany.
Heinz Galinski, chairman of the German Jewish community, has urged Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble to enforce the bans on events such as the celebration of Hitler’s birthday, which invariably stir violence, or a vigil in Munich several weeks ago at which the truth of the Holocaust was publicly denied.
About 150 neo-Nazi youths and Skinheads were taken into temporary custody in Dresden on Saturday to prevent a clash with anti-fascists after they marched through the city to mark the fuhrer’s 102nd anniversary.
About 15 neo-Nazis were arrested in Oberweser, near Kassel in central Germany, after a Hitler party that damaged shops and parked cars.
In Osnabruck, in the norther state of Hanover, neo-Nazi activists attacked a group of Kurds who were on a hunger strike to protest the Iraqi massacre of their people. Some Kurds were badly beaten by the time police arrived and their tent was demolished.
In Magdeburg, in the center of what was formerly East Germany, dozens of neo-Nazi hooligans clashed with police after throwing cans and assaulting spectators at a local soccer match. Several arrests were reported.
Incidents involving neo-Nazis were also reported in Leipzig, Cottbus and Birkenwerda in eastern Germany.
Galinski demanded that the authorities intervene more forcefully when right-wing extremists display Nazi symbols in violation of the law and spread anti-Semitic propaganda.
In Munich, neo-Nazis claimed no Jews were ever killed at Auschwitz and Treblinka.
How can Germany subject its small surviving Jewish community to such outrageous expressions? Galinski asked.
The Jewish leader had urged the prime minister of Saxony, Kurt Biedenkopf, to ban the Hitler birthday march in Dresden.
Sociologists have blamed the emergence of right-wing extremism in the former Communistruled territory on unemployment, poor living conditions and the collapse of state authority.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
