Middle East War: Solidarity with Palestinians – Criticism of Greta Thunberg

This Friday, Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg called for a strike for solidarity with the Palestinians instead of a strike for the climate.

On the online networks X and Instagram, Thunberg wrote on Friday: “Today we are striking in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world must raise its voice and demand an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for the Palestinians and all affected civilians.” Pro-Palestinian organizations had called for a “general strike,” and Thunberg shared the leaflet in an Instagram story.

Thunberg’s contribution received a lot of attention in the online media and caused outrage in parts of German politics. Critics particularly complained that Thunberg did not specifically mention the 1,400 deaths in the major attack by the Islamist Hamas on Israel two weeks ago.

The anti-Semitism commissioner for the state of Baden-Württemberg, Michael Blume, called the posting on the platform X, formerly Twitter, “dualistic, false and trivializing terrorism.” Landshut Bundestag member Marlene Schönberger from the Greens told “Welt” that Thunberg had achieved a lot in the fight for climate protection. With her statement, however, she proves that the compassion she has “for those affected by the climate crisis” does not seem to apply to Jews affected by “barbaric acts of extermination.”

A few hours after Thunberg posted the post, she deleted it and re-uploaded it, this time with a new photo. There had previously been criticism of a cuddly toy seen in the picture, which was said to be reminiscent of an anti-Semitic symbol. Thunberg wrote in her new post that she was unaware of the similarity. “We are of course against any kind of discrimination and condemn anti-Semitism in any form,” she wrote on X.