Thank you so much for inviting me here this evening and for allowing me to say a few words.
I wish I could say that I am happy to be here, but that would only be half true.
Of course I am delighted to have the opportunity to talk to so many distinguished and interesting people. Some of you I would be so bold as to call my friends.
So I am very happy to be here with you. But I am not happy about the reason for our being here today. None of us are.

In one of his diaries, the writer Imre Kertesz asks: “Why do people hate the Jews even more since Auschwitz?” He then answers the question himself: “Because of Auschwitz.”
It seems to me that the same perverse logic cited by Kertesz is being applied to the 7th of October and its repercussions. On that day, Jews were so clearly and indisputably the victims that antisemites simply cannot forgive them. And the fact that Israel is now in a position to strike back is intolerable to all Jew-haters, and makes them feel all the more entitled to give free rein to their hatred. This is something that Jews are confronted with on a daily basis – including here in Germany.

Threats against Jews are especially prevalent in universities. On a regular basis, antisemites gather in sufficient numbers to disrupt events so severely that they have to be called off. This is bad enough. But it does not stop there.

Just last week, a student at Berlin’s Freie Universität, Lahav Shapira, was assaulted by another student in the heart of Berlin. Shapira had to be taken to hospital for surgery. He had been protesting against pro-Palestine demonstrations at his university in the wake of the 7th of October attacks. All he did was denounce the trivialisation of terrorism and draw attention to the plight of Israelis abducted by Hamas. Shapira is a Jew.

It is not my place to second-guess the investigations, but it seems highly likely that this was yet another of the antisemitic crimes that are becoming so common in Germany.

In all of last year, the Federal Criminal Police Office recorded no less than 2,300 such crimes. But since the terrorist attack by Hamas on the 7th of October, there have been almost as many again.

These are harrowing figures. And their implications are just as concerning: A majority of Jews in Germany do not feel safe in public.

Politicians and investigation authorities must act. And they are doing just that – for example, by applying the full force of criminal law. The raids late last year against Hamas members in Berlin and Rotterdam, the ban on the activities of Hamas and the dissolution of the Samidoun network all send a clear message:

Those who plan or commit acts of violence against Jews in this country will face charges.
Those who disseminate propaganda for unconstitutional and terrorist organisations, who display the symbols of unconstitutional and terrorist organisations, who burn the Israeli flag, who support foreign terrorist networks or condone criminal acts are engaging in criminal behaviour themselves, and will be prosecuted accordingly.

And if the perpetrators are not German citizens, in addition to criminal prosecution we must also take a close look at their residence status. In some cases, of course, this will mean expulsion. There is a clear public interest in expelling those who incite hatred against Jews from the country.

The last thing we want is for antisemites to become German citizens. On this point, may I draw your attention to the debate on German citizenship law. Many disreputable voices, but sadly also some reputable ones, have repeatedly lamented what they see as a “devaluation” of citizenship in Germany. Nothing could be further from the truth!

The process may in certain cases be faster than before, but the criteria have become more stringent. One example is the requirement for applicants to be able to support themselves financially. Another is stricter rules to prevent the naturalisation of antisemites.

In future, naturalisation authorities are to investigate whether even minor offences such as verbal abuse were prompted by antisemitic motives.

If an applicant is listed in the Federal Central Criminal Register, naturalisation authorities are required to contact the competent public prosecution office. If a judge finds that an act was driven by antisemitic sentiment, the perpetrator will be barred from acquiring German citizenship.

Antisemites are not welcome in Germany – and will certainly not be given a German passport!

But antisemitism is of course not limited to the streets. It is just as prevalent online.
Here too, our authorities are taking decisive action. Since the 7th of October, the Federal Criminal Police Office has issued 273 removal orders against online channels or content, and sent an additional 2977 deletion requests to service providers, most of which were complied with.

The Federal Government has prohibited dissemination of the Hamas slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free”. This ban also applies to the internet. This means, for instance, that the sale of T-shirts displaying the slogan is an offence.

Germany cannot enforce the ban alone: under the Digital Services Act, responsibility for the major online platforms lies with the EU.
I therefore contacted the relevant commissioner, Thierry Breton, and asked him to carefully monitor online marketplaces such as Amazon and Alibaba for products bearing the slogan. Operators are required to take steps to prevent dissemination of unlawful content. I have every confidence that the Commission will keep a close eye on the situation and take appropriate action where necessary. It is not acceptable for T-shirts challenging Israel’s existence to be freely available to order online!

The government and administration are committed to fighting antisemitism with all available means.
But they cannot win this struggle alone: they need the support of our schools, our universities, our associations and youth centres, and also our media.

As a politician, it is not appropriate for me to judge the work of the media, and that is not my intent. But I do have one request:
that Hamas not be confused with a news agency;
and that the outrageous term “hostage exchange” not be applied to a conflict between a state governed by the rule of law on one hand, and a terrorist mob on the other.

Equally important in the fight against antisemitism are the citizens of this country.

That is why I was so pleased to see the hundreds of thousands of demonstrators who took to the streets in protest against the enemies of our constitution. This was an important show of commitment to our constitutional values. The participants marched for democracy, for human dignity, for fundamental rights and for the rule of law.

But I cannot help thinking that I would have liked to see these same people take to the streets in the wake of the 7th of October. Because antisemites are also enemies of the constitution – as Josef Schuster once again emphasised in his ceremonial address at the New Year’s Reception at my Ministry a couple of weeks ago.

The writer Saul Bellow wrote that there is no accuracy in suppression: if you hold down one thing, you hold down the adjoining.
And so, to those who tolerate antisemitism because they believe it does not affect them, we must make clear: Yes, antisemites hate Jews – but in doing so, they hate people. In fact, they hate humanity itself.
Because those who would oppress a particular group of people will quite happily do the same to another.

Hamas is a prime example. It does not just hate and murder Jews, but also homosexuals, women, dissenters. It is plain to see how much value Hamas places on the lives of its own people: none at all.

Otherwise, the Israeli hostages still being held would have been released; Hamas would have stopped its bombardments of Israel (which, incidentally, merit greater media coverage than they receive); and it would not misuse hospitals and schools as protective shields.

To celebrate this murderous organisation, or even to portray it as a liberation movement, as seems to be almost fashionable in certain circles, is outrageous, abhorrent and stupid. It is to plant the seed of hate – a seed which sadly flourishes all too often.

In this conflict, we stand by Israel’s side – that is where Germany belongs. We do so because of our historical responsibility –
and because of the liberal democratic ideals that we share with Israel: freedom and the rule of law, an independent judiciary and free elections, protection of the individual, a diverse press – of which the Jerusalem Post is a notable element.

Israel is fighting for its existence – and it is doing so with full regard for the law. This is the view of the International Court of Justice; otherwise, it would have ordered an end to the fighting.
Many innocent people are dying in this war. Every one of these deaths is lamentable, whether in Israel or Gaza. But the responsibility for these casualties lies squarely with Hamas.

To those who say that we must look at both sides of the conflict, I reply: That is precisely what we do.

On the one side, we see a murderous terrorist organisation, and on the other innocent victims – Israeli and Palestinian.
On the one side, we see a fanatical Islamist regime, and on the other a liberal democracy.
On the one side, we see vile antisemitic hate, and on the other Jews in fear of their lives, including here in Germany.
So we know exactly where we stand. We stand with the victims, with liberal democracy, with Jews. We stand with Israel.

We stand with Israel because we know who is responsible for the terror of the 7th of October. We stand with Israel because we know that every nation in the world would expect its government to eliminate the threat of such terror ever being repeated. And we stand with Israel because we are convinced that our friends in Israel know that even a legitimate war must one day come to an end.

Am Israel chai!