System -- Top German rights institute warns of rising anti-Muslim racism
Posted on: December 11, 2024
Germany's leading human rights organisation has warned of increasing anti-Muslim racism amid heightened Middle East tensions, urging politicians and media to avoid harmful generalisations.
The German Institute for Human Rights (DIMR) released on Monday a 32-page report examining the Gaza conflict's impact on democracy and human rights, focusing primarily on rising antisemitism but also concerns over increased anti-Muslim incidents.
DIMR Director Beate Rudolf pointed out that overgeneralisations and negative stereotypes about Muslims in political discourse and media coverage following the Palestinian group Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack have had a negative impact on basic rights and freedoms.
"Anyone who criticises the Israeli government is not automatically acting antisemitic. Anyone who advocates for a separate state for the Palestinians is not automatically a Hamas sympathiser. Generalisations only promote antisemitism, as well as racism against Palestinians and Muslims," she told a press conference in Berlin.
The report showed that antisemitic incidents in Germany have surged since Oct. 7, 2023, with hate crimes doubling to 5,164 cases in 2023, compared with the previous year.
More than half of these offences occurred in the final quarter. The first half of 2024 saw 1,997 antisemitic crimes reported to police.