Migrants from countries hostile to Israel may strengthen anti-Semitism in Europe, the leader of Germany’s Jewish community has warned.
The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany (CCJG) warned Chancellor Angela Merkel of the issue in person during a recent meeting that also involved other religious communities and trade unions. Josef Schuster’s remarks were met by an “awkward silence”, he told German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, which Merkel noted saying: “We must deal with that.”
“Among those seeking asylum in Germany, a large number come from countries in which they hear about Israel the bogeyman. They have grown up with this hostility to Israel and often transfer their resentment to Jews in general,” Schuster explained.
As a result, Jewish communities now fear the rise of “Arabic anti-Semitism” in Germany. At the same time Schuster and others in the CCJG support Merkel’s ‘open-door’ policy, despite their professed view that a rejection of all forms of anti-Semitism and solidarity with Israel are basic tenets of the German Federal Republic.
Interviewed in the German Jewish newspaper Jüdische Allgemeine, Schuster spoke of his support for efforts to integrate migrants. Referring to the recent Arabic translation of the German constitution, previously reported by Breitbart London, he thought it a good start for wider integration moves describing it as “a symbolic gesture that certainly does no harm.” He continued:
“For successful integration, it takes a lot more, especially many sustainable measures. German language skills, education, training, social integration through clubs, jobs – all this contributes significantly to refugees getting to know our basic values and laws. You should not deny their origins or cast all their traditions overboard. But they must recognise our constitution. If the Basic Law in Arabic is the first step – why not?”
Schuster said that anti-Israel demonstrations during the Gaza conflict of summer 2014 (picture above, in Berlin) show where the unchecked sentiment can lead, saying Jewish communities are concerned anti-Semitic riots are now more likely.
He said he shares that concern, but rather than questioning Angela Merkel’s open door invitation to Syrian migration the answer for Schuster is to “integrate refugees into [the German] community of values as fast and as hard as possible.”
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