Watermelons and Keffiyehs: German Holocaust Memorial Institute Labels Pro-Palestine Slogans as ‘Anti-Semitic’

Berlin (Quds News Network)- Germany’s Holocaust memorial institute has labeled several well-known pro-Palestinian symbols and slogans as “anti-Semitic” and “potentially anti-Zionist or anti-Israel.”

In a new 57-page guide published by Germany’s Buchenwald Memorial Centre on July 7, and titled “Problematic brands, codes, symbols and signs of right-wing extremist and anti-Semitic groups”, the second section treats pro-Palestine symbols as equally dangerous as neo-Nazi and far-right symbols.

The report claims that the watermelon is part of “well-rehearsed canon of hostility towards Israel” as it’s used as a symbol of the Palestinian flag. The report also claims that all pro-Palestinian images are a “negation of the rights of Jews to live in Israel”.

The BDS Movement and the Handala symbol it uses are also targeted in the report.

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, “Ceasefire now” and “End the genocide”, chants widely used by pro-Palestine protesters,” are also cited in the report.

The report alleges that “Ceasefire now” is a “unilateral demand at the expense of Israel”, adding that the word “genocide” “demonises the Jewish state”.

Besides the ban on “From the river to the sea” and Keffiyehs in schools, the other symbols and slogans cited in the report have not been legally banned by the German government.

This latest incident adds to ongoing debates in Germany about ethics and anti-Palestinian sentiment with the zionist lobby controlling the narrative in the country.

­­­­­­Since Israel launched its ongoing genocide in Gaza, the German government has not only provided wide-ranging political and diplomatic support for Israel, but has also fast-tracked arms exports to facilitate the­­­ Israeli slaughter of Palestinian civilians.

Germany also marginalized Palestinians within German society and brutally suppressed pro-Palestinian activism, including those of Jewish activists.