Radical Islamists gather in Hamburg to call for caliphate

Over 2000 radical Islamists gathered in Hamburg, Germany, on Saturday to call for a caliphate and the implementation of Sharia law, German news reported.

In the footage from the gathering, crowds could be heard chanting Allahu Akhbar, among other things.

The demonstration was organized by a group called Muslim Interaktiv, which is considered by German security and intelligence to be affiliated with Hizb ur-Tahrir, an organization banned in 2003 for promoting the killing of Jews.

Muslim Interaktiv has been classified as extremist by the Hamburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution, according to Tagesspiegel. 

The group, founded in 2020, is led by Joe Adade Boateng, also known as Raheem Boateng, who spoke at the demonstration. Hamburg recently prohibited Boateng from working as a teacher due to his ties to Islamism, according to BILD.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Muslim Interaktiv (@minteraktiv)

In a post about the event on the group's Instagram, it was written, "The colonial order that can only be overcome by a rightfully guided caliphate – a caliphate that will once again allow Jews, Christians, and Muslims to live peacefully together."

"Caliphate - the end of occupation, extermination, genocide."

The group also posted on X/Twitter “Israel’s Top 5 Lies about the Genocide," in which they argue that Israel's claim to be acting in self-defense and its historical claims to the land are false. 

Muslim Interaktiv claimed the turnout of the demonstration was around 5000 people.

The organization has been active in Germany over the last year, organizing many rallies, especially against Israel's war against Hamas.

Über 5000 Teilnehmer!In der Einheit liegt unsere Stärke!#KalifatImNahenOsten pic.twitter.com/vGeRuPJJcU

— Muslim Interaktiv (@MInteraktiv) October 12, 2024

Bans on the organization

Hamburg police chief Frank Schnabel told ZDF in April he saw no legal basis for banning the organization. Likewise, Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann said their calls for a caliphate were "politically absurd" but not punishable by law, according to BILD.

However, Christoph de Vries, a member of the Hamburg CDU Bundestag, called for them to be banned, saying they were "an Islamist, anti-Israel group."

Hizb ur-Tahri

Hizb ur-Tahri, the believed affiliate organization, is an international pan-Islamist and Islamic fundamentalist political organization that aims to reinstate the Islamic caliphate and implement sharia globally.

It was established in East Jerusalem and is banned in Germany, the UK, and all Arab countries except Lebanon, Yemen, and the UAE. 

Britain proscribed it as a terrorist organization, subject to an agreement by parliament in 2024.

"Hizb ut-Tahrir is an antisemitic organization that actively promotes and encourages terrorism, including praising and celebrating the appalling 7 October attacks," former interior minister James Cleverly said.