German Chancellor Olaf Scholz strongly condemned the firebomb attack on a synagogue in Berlin on Wednesday, saying “We will never accept when attacks are made against Jewish institutions.”
Attackers hurled two Molotov cocktails early Wednesday at a synagogue in the center of the German capital, police said, as antisemitic incidents in the country escalated amid rising violence in the Middle East.
“An unknown person threw two Molotov cocktails from the street,” wrote the Kahal Adass Jisroel community on X, previously Twitter. Dozens of police officers are investigating in front of the synagogue in the city’s Mitte neighborhood, and the entire street next to the building has been cordoned off and blocked to traffic.
Police said they were investigating a “serious attempted arson” in which two people approached the synagogue on foot at 3:45 a.m. and threw two Molotov cocktails, which exploded on the sidewalk next to the building.
The two men, their faces covered, ran away.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz strongly condemned Wednesday’s firebomb attack on a synagogue in Berlin. AP attackers threw two Molotov cocktails early Wednesday at a synagogue in the center of the German capital, police said. Reuters
A few hours later, when the police were already investigating the incident, a 30-year-old man approached the synagogue on a scooter, threw it aside, and tried to run towards the building.
When police officers arrested him, he resisted and shouted anti-Israel slogans.
“We are all shocked by this terrorist attack,” Germany’s leading Jewish group, the Jewish Central Council, said in a statement. “Most importantly, families from the neighborhood around the synagogue are shocked and uneasy. Words become actions. Hamas’ ideology of extermination of everything Jewish also has an effect in Germany.”
Police said they were investigating a “serious attempted arson” after two Molotov cocktails exploded on the sidewalk next to the building. REUTERS As police investigated the incident, they arrested a 30-year-old man who approached the synagogue and shouted anti-Israel slogans. AP
The Kahal Adass Jisroel community building complex in the heart of Berlin houses a synagogue, a kindergarten, a yeshiva school and a community center.
Police also said there were overnight riots between Muslim migrants and police in the city’s Neukoelln and Kreuzberg neighborhoods and at Berlin’s landmark Brandenburg Gate where several officers were injured.
Scholz, who spoke to reporters during a visit to Egypt on Wednesday, said that Germany would not accept violent and antisemitic protests and that the protection of Jewish institutions would continue to be increased.
The Kahal Adass Jisroel community building complex in the heart of Berlin houses a synagogue, a kindergarten, a yeshiva school and a community center. AFP via Getty Images Shlomo Afanasev, a rabbi and longtime member of the Kahal Adass Yisroel community, said he was shocked by the attack.REUTERS
“It angers me personally what some of them are chanting and doing, and I am sure that the German people have the same opinion as me,” said Scholz.
“We are united to protect the Jews too” in Germany, the chancellor added.
Shlomo Afanasev, a rabbi and longtime member of the Kahal Adass Yisroel community, said he was shocked by the attack.
Antisemitic incidents in the country are on the rise amid an increase in violence in the Middle East, according to reports.REUTERS In the wake of the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, police have stepped up security at Jewish institutions in Berlin and across Germany. AFP via Getty Images
“I’ve been going to synagogue since 2006, and … I always go with my kippah,” he told The Associated Press. “We feel until today very safe here. And never thought something like this could happen in this area. In the heart of Berlin.”
Afanasev added that he will wear a baseball cap from now on to cover his helmet because “I don’t want to be openly Jewish … outside, because it doesn’t feel safe anymore. Unfortunately.”
Following the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent war in Gaza, police have stepped up security for Jewish institutions in Berlin and across Germany.
“We will not accept when attacks are made against Jewish institutions,” said Scholz. via REUTERS
However, Israeli flags that were flown as a sign of solidarity in front of city halls across the country were torn down and burned.
Some buildings in Berlin where Jews lived had stars of David painted on their doors and walls.
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