However, the region of origin is more important than religion, says anti-Semitism researcher Arnold. “There are different factors influencing these increased approval ratings for Israel-related anti-Semitism. One is certainly narratives from regions of origin.” This is about people who have emigrated from countries where anti-Zionism is part of the state program.
Nazi ideology spread in the Muslim world
Abdullah Qabbani lives with his wife in a prefabricated housing estate. Even as a child you would learn to be against Israel in your home country of Syria. “In elementary school we learned that Israel is an enemy state and we have to be strong to confront this state because they want to occupy our land.” This perspective on Israel has not changed in Germany over the past seven years.
In elementary school we learned that Israel is an enemy state and we have to be strong to confront this state because they want to occupy our land.
Abdullah Qabbani
During its research, MDR Investigative came across a three-year-old video: Children in blue uniforms are standing in a row in a schoolyard. It is intended to show an appeal in Syria in which students swear an oath to their country. At the end, everyone stretches their right arm upwards with an outstretched hand – a gesture reminiscent of the Hitler salute. Qabbani says that he knows this from his school days: “Children learn that.” We cannot finally clarify whether the gesture really means the Hitler salute.
Extremism expert Mansour confirms that Nazi ideology is widespread in the Muslim world. “If you go to Jordan and say you’re German, you’ll probably be asked about Hitler and how great the man was.” Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” is a kind of bestseller in the Muslim world. “That’s a completely different approach because of this hatred of Jews, of course. This means that this reflection that the Germans took part in and the distancing from this Nazi ideology is hardly present in the Arab world.”
Anti-Semitism is not just a Muslim problem
Igor Matviyets is Jewish. He works for the “State Network of Migrant Organizations in Saxony-Anhalt” and is active in the SPD. Since October 7th and the subsequent riots and slogans against Israel and Jews, he has been asked several times whether Jewish life is safe in Germany.
Well, I have the impression that people very quickly forget that the threat to Jewish life is actually a constant in German history.
Igor Matviyets
“Well, I have the impression that people very quickly forget that the threat to Jewish life is actually a constant in German history,” says Matviyets. “And as soon as something as tragic, as bad, as big as what happened on October 7th, everyone looks again.”
Looking solely at anti-Semitism among Muslims is the wrong approach, says Matviyets. “It is suggested that this is not a German problem. And in my opinion that makes it too easy. Well, I live in Halle. Our community was the target of a German who was driven by anti-Semitism.”
In October 2019, the attacker tried to enter the synagogue at gunpoint on Yom Kippur in order to kill the people gathered there. He murdered two people. Today, Matviyets works with many Muslims. He says: In order to break entrenched anti-Semitic thought patterns, more educational opportunities are needed.
A solution: Approach integration correctly
Omar was able to break away from Islamism with the help of a violence prevention program. Today he works as a social worker with criminals. He tries to pass on the help he once received himself. Reflecting on his own attitudes and the help he received enabled him to shed his learned prejudices. “I really thought for 20 years that the Jew was my greatest enemy, without knowing why. Because that’s what I was told in the language as a child.”
But not everyone manages to get rid of anti-Semitic thought patterns. These are too strongly anchored in some biographies. “If we want to do integration right, one or two integration courses are not enough,” says psychologist Mansour. People need to be supported and made clear to them: “If you want to be part of Germany, you have to internalize the values of this society and live by them and see them as an opportunity. But I don’t see these efforts. I just see politics that keeps saying, never again and anti-Semitism has no place. But carry on as before October 7th.”