Antonio Rüdiger has commented publicly for the first time on the criminal complaint he filed against Julian Reichelt. The 31-year-old explains his motives behind the picture posted, which the journalist Julian Reichelt described as extremist.
National player Antonio Rüdiger spoke publicly about the case for the first time after his criminal complaint against Reichelt, former editor-in-chief of “Bild” and now working for the online magazine “Nius”. This is a gesture shown by Rüdiger in an Instagram photo at the beginning of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.
The 31-year-old placed great emphasis on clearly distancing himself from Islamist and extremist views.
“I will not allow myself to be insulted and denigrated as an Islamist. That’s why I decided to file a complaint,” said Rüdiger in his statement on “bild.de”: “This is about creating an atmosphere and dividing people. I will be against this always defend myself decisively.”
The photo in question was “used by individuals to make unfounded accusations,” said Rüdiger: “As a devout Muslim, I practice my faith, but I firmly distance myself from any kind of extremism and accusations of Islamism. Violence and terrorism are absolutely unacceptable. I stand up for peace and tolerance.”
Antonio Rüdiger explains his gesture
In the photo, the Real Madrid professional showed himself with a raised finger.
“The gesture I used is the so-called tawheed finger. In Islam, this is considered a symbol of the unity and uniqueness of God. The gesture is common among Muslims all over the world and has only been used in recent days by Federal Ministry of the Interior once again classified it as unproblematic,” said Rüdiger.
Rüdiger admitted that “due to insufficient attention, he gave third parties the chance to deliberately misinterpret my posting in order to divide and polarize.”
“But he will not offer a platform for division and radicalization, which is why I have decided to make a clear statement after our two successful international matches.”
Rüdiger: Criminal complaint relates to insult and incitement
Rüdiger and the German Football Association (DFB) are currently taking legal action against Julian Reichelt.
As the SID confirmed from both sides, Rüdiger filed a criminal complaint with the Berlin public prosecutor’s office, and the DFB also reported the case to the Central Office for Combating Internet Crime (ZIT) of the Frankfurt/Main Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Rüdiger’s criminal complaint to the Berlin public prosecutor’s office has been submitted to the SID: It relates to allegations of insult or slander, inflammatory insults and incitement to hatred.
Rüdiger did not comment in the run-up to the international match against the Netherlands on Tuesday.