The Goethe Institute has postponed a German government-sponsored event drawing comparisons between the Holocaust and the so-called Nakba which had been scheduled for the anniversary of Kristallnacht following backlash from the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
The event, titled Understanding the Other Side’s Pain: The Shoah, the Nakba, and the German Remembrance Culture. was sponsored by the Rosa Luxembourg Foundation of the German Die Linke party and was originally scheduled for tomorrow, November 9. The event has now been pushed back to November 13.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry stated that it was “shocked and disgusted” at the event, calling it a “cynical and manipulative” attempt to use the memory of the Holocaust to attack Israel. The ministry called on all parties involved to cancel the event.
After the event was postponed, the Ministry reiterated its position that it be cancelled altogether: “Our position is that this event is shameful and disgraceful and should not take place on any date, not just Kristallnacht.”
The event was criticized by several Jewish and Zionist organizations.
Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean and director of global social action at the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) said: “It is despicable that any German would utter Shoah and Nakba in the same breath. There is nothing wrong with exploring the feelings of Palestinians, but to link the Palestinian-Israel conflict in any way to Nazi Germany’s ‘Final Solution’ that murdered 6 million innocent Jews, among them 1.5 million Jewish children, is a monstrous insult to the victims of the Shoah, to the Jewish State of Israel, to survivors of the Shoah and to historic truth.”
“Convening such a discussion in Israel — on the anniversary of Kristallnacht — by the foundation of a left wing German political party, at the respected Goethe Institute, is an odious provocation. The SWC calls on the Goethe Institute to cancel its hosting of the event and urges Israel Prime Minster Lapid to demand that this event be canceled.”
Matan Peleg, CEO ,of Im Tirtzu and author of the book ‘A State for Sale’, which reveals the depth of involvement and influence of foreign countries on what is happening in Israel, said: “The new government must reassess relations with the German government. We thank the Germans for assisting in our defense, but it is not possible that at the same time Germany promotes, in bodies funded by the federal government, a narrative of Nakba and the Holocaust. This is something that must stop immediately and is related to German funding initiatives to change our soldiers’ open-fire policies, the funding of anti-Zionist organizations that persecute IDF soldiers, and more. Put an end to it.”
Merav Hajaj, from The Choosing Life Forum that represents bereaved families who will participate in tomorrow’s protest, said: “The German government dishonors the memory of the Holocaust, dishonors the fallen soldiers, and the bereaved families. The Nakba is an invented concept whose purpose is to negate the existence of the State of Israel. We paid a very heavy price in the defense of this country, the German government must intervening in Israel’s right to exist!”