Thousands march through the Ruhr city of Essen on Friday evening. Actually it should be about Palestine. But then the participants call for a caliphate. Politicians are horrified.
Several politicians reacted with horror to the Islamist rally in Essen. Essen’s mayor Thomas Kufen (CDU) criticized in a report in the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” on Saturday morning that “Islamists, anti-democrats and Jew-haters” were able to move through the city, protected by the freedom of assembly enshrined in the Basic Law, and called for consequences: “The Office for the Protection of the Constitution must protect splinter groups. and successor groups to Hizb ut-Tahrir should be more closely examined. Bans must be an option.”
At the event on Friday evening, which was registered as a pro-Palestine rally, around 3,000 people marched through the Ruhr metropolis with Islamist slogans in Arabic on banners and banners. Among other things, they demanded the establishment of a caliphate.
Politicians demand legal consequences
In addition to Essen’s mayor, a number of other politicians reacted with horror and dismay to the rally. Schleswig-Holstein’s Education Minister Karin Prien called for consequences on the platform who herself has Jewish roots.
Green politician in Essen on platform His went one step further and accused the demonstrators of sedition. Baden-Württemberg’s finance minister, Danyal Bayaz, spoke of Islamist fascism that must be fought and pursued “without naivety and cultural blinders.”
CSU General Secretary Martin Huber made similar comments. He described the demonstration as a “disgrace”. Anyone who waves the flags of terrorist organizations such as Hamas, the Taliban or the Islamic State is declaring war on Western values. He also demanded: “Anyone who celebrates terror in Germany must feel the full severity of the rule of law and (…) get out of Germany.”
Demo in Essen with gender separation
Investigators are currently examining the criminal relevance. The police assume that the “pro-Palestine” reason given to the authorities may have only been used to hold an “Islamic religious gathering” on the streets of Essen. This is supported by “the fact that stewards strictly separated the sexes and women and children had to walk at the end of the elevator.” At the final rally, women and children should have stood in a different place than the men.
The police did not find any criminal violations regarding chants, symbols and flags during the rally. In addition to pro-Palestinian flags and signs, flags that resembled the banned symbols of the Islamic State and the Taliban, but were not banned, were also shown. Image and sound recordings are currently being evaluated by state security and interpreters. Attention should also be paid to aspects relevant to criminal law. “In these cases, the Essen police will consistently pursue crimes in close coordination with the public prosecutor’s office,” the police said.
Sources: X (formerly Twitter), “”, with material from DPA
Source: Stern
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