Inserts:

00:03 Report / Alex Gerst
00:12 Johann Wadephul (CDU) / German Foreign Minister
01:10 Benjamin Jendro / Trade Union of the Police
01:29 Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) / German Interior Minister
02:26 Alexandra Krioukov / Jewish Student Union

SCRIPT: 

An attack in the US, that may influence German politics. 

as it fuels a debate about the security of Jews here in Germany. 

((+++SOT Johann Wadephul, German Foreign Minister+++ 

This is terrible. We mourn with the families, with the relatives, and on this occasion I also expressed my sympathy to my Israeli colleague Sa'ar. It is necessary to investigate what the background is, and we see time and again that Jews all over the world are exposed to dangers that are unacceptable.)) 

Jews and Jewish installations have long had special protections in Germany because of the country's Nazi past and its responsibility for the Holocaust, and as they are constantly under threat. 

Security was stepped up further when Hamas carried out its terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 

But the attack in Washington could also have repercussions here. 

((+++SOT Benjamin Jendro, Trade Union of the Police+++ Jendro in medialoopster)) 

Well, in a situation like the one in Washington, security is stepped up again a bit. (…) That’s why the global situation plays an important role here too. In Berlin, we protect more than 100 institutions, meaning buildings, around the clock. That includes, for example, Jewish kindergartens." 

Ne bei so einer Lage, wie man sie jetzt beispielsweise hat in Washington, dann wird eben noch mal ein bisschen hochgefahren. (…) deswegen ist die globale Lage hier schon auch entscheidend, so dass wir in Berlin mehr als 100 Institutionen, also Gebäude. Weile rund um die Uhr schützen dazu gehören dann beispielsweise auch jüdische Kindergärten.)) 

This is all happening against the backdrop of a rise in anti-semitism.  

Germany’s interior ministry this week reported a sharp rise in the number of  cases and said there would be consequences, like deporting perpertrators who did not have German nationality.

((+++SOT Alexander Dobrindt, German Interior Minister+++ 

It will have repercussions in terms of state interest in deportation for individuals who commit antisemitic crimes and do not hold German citizenship, but also in terms of protecting Jewish people and Jewish institutions in Germany." 

Im Bereich von Ausweisungsinteresse bei Menschen, die hier antisemitische Straftaten begehen und keine deutsche Staatsangehörigkeit haben, aber auch im Bereich des Schutzes gegenüber Jüdinnen und Juden, gegenüber auch jüdischen Einrichtungen in Deutschland.)) 

Since 2022, antisemitic cases have gone up 130 percent. ((2022: 2641, 2023: 5164, 2024: 6236))

Most are carried out by the far right – but religious extremists and the far-left are also increasingly to blame- especially in the wake of Israel's war in Gaza. 

Three quarters of Jews surveyed in Berlin said they felt less safe than before the Hamas attack on October 7th 2023  . 

And more than a third say they stay away from events organized by the Jewish community because of fears about security.  

This share almost doubled over the last 18 months. 

Yet for Jews in Germany such fears are not unusual. 

((+++SOT Alexandra Krioukov, Jewish Student Union+++ 

I've I've went to a Jewish school, so I grew up with police and glass that is bulletproof. It's just the way we grew up. We know that people want to attack us and we've seen this increase especially since October 7th. But it's been a reality before. (...) It's a it's a responsibility of everyone who lives and believes in democracy because anti-Semitism and its core as the conspiracy theories and as an eliminatory believe it threatens all of democracy doesn't threaten just Jews. But that's where it hits. It hits our lives and it hits our realities.)) 

With politically motivated crimes on the rise, the situation for Jews in Germany could become even more difficult. ((PIX: Jewish Symbolysm))