Calls to dismantle Munich uni Palestine camp after Hamas contact claims
Reports named Hamas terrorists with whom the protesters are in direct contact, and added that the protesters had had video calls with the terrorists.
The State of Bavaria's antisemitism commissioner, Ludwig Spaenle, is calling for the dismantling of a pro-Palestinian encampment in front of Munich's Ludwig Maximilian University, after the paper Süddeutsche Zeitung reported this weekend that the encampment's organizers were in direct contact with members of Hamas.
The findings were corroborated by the Center on Antisemitism in Bavaria (RIAS) and Munich Information Center on Right-Wing Extremism.
Spaenle released a statement saying that "the times of tolerance and acceptance of those who support terror are over."
He called for the immediate clearance of the camp.
"Incitement, glorification of violence and incitement to aggression and murder have no place in Germany and should not be tolerated," said Dr. Spaenle.
The paper Süddeutsche Zeitung named two Hamas terrorists with whom the protesters are in direct contact, and added that the protesters had had video calls with the terrorists.
However, the group running the encampment, University for Palestine Munich, posted a public statement condemning the "defamation" of the organization.
"Once again, we are confronted with a torrent of misinformation aimed at defaming our peaceful protest, misrepresenting our commitment to justice and solidarity," the group wrote on Instagram.
"We will not be silenced by these relentless attempts to twist our cause."
Previous attempts to remove encampment
The Munich Office of Public Order previously tried to ban this specific encampment in May 2023, but failed.
While figures such as Spaenle criticised the camp as one-sidedly blaming Israel, the demonstrators' press spokesman, Kilian Gremminger, said the protesters merely wanted to "draw attention to the killing of civilians," according to BR24.
On his website, Class Against Class, Gremninger contested Spaenle's accusation of antisemitism, saying that "no-one at the camp or in [their] movement is blaming Jews."
"Our protest is directed against the genocidal war of the Israeli state," he added.
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