Anti-Semitic Quds march in Frankfurt: Research reveals network of organizers close to Iran
Criticism of anti-Israeli demonstration in Frankfurt
Frankfurt / Berlin, 4.4.2024
Two days before a "major demonstration" against Israel announced in Frankfurt on the occasion of "Al Quds Day", the German-Israeli Society and the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin are publishing research findings on the organizers.The brochure, published with a greeting from Mayor Dr. Nargess Eskandari-Grünberg, reveals an anti-Semitic and Islamist network in the Rhine-Main region that operates in coordination with the Tehran regime.
For decades, the so-called "Al Quds Day" (Quds = Arabic for Jerusalem) has been a national day of struggle in Iran, on which people demonstrate for the destruction of the Jewish state. Supporters of the regime in Iran organize Quds marches in various countries to promote the goal of Israel's destruction worldwide. A "Quds March" has also been held in Frankfurt since 2015. This year, it will take place on April 6 and lead from the main train station to the Hauptwache from 2 pm. Recent research by the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin (MFFB) shows how strongly the Quds March in Frankfurt is shaped by anti-Semitic and anti-Israel propaganda and how close the organizers' ties to Iran are. [1]
The Quds March was also held in Berlin for decades. After the Berlin authorities publicly announced in 2020 that they would consider banning the Quds March, the organizers have refrained from registering the demonstrations in recent years. [2] In Frankfurt, representatives of civil society organizations are alarmed.
Tibor Luckenbach, deputy chairman of the German-Israeli Society Frankfurt, explains: "We see a great need in Frankfurt to take action against this well-known anti-Semitic threat. Especially in view of the current political situation - in the midst of a war by Iranian proxies against Israel and an accompanying massive wave of global Jew-hatred - it would be scandalous if such an event were to be accepted in Frankfurt without objection."
Dr. Ulrike Becker from the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin says: "By holding the Quds March, the Islamic Republic of Iran is fuelling anti-Semitism worldwide. Through anti-Semitic propaganda and terrorist attacks, the regime in Iran poses a threat to Jewish people and institutions, but also to Iranian opponents of the regime in Germany. It is important to take these dangers seriously and ban the Quds March everywhere in Germany and close all Iranian institutions in Germany."
In order to enable the people of Frankfurt to make an informed judgment about the anti-Semitic goings-on on their streets and to sensitize politicians to the need for action, the research results are now available on the MFFB homepage and can be obtained as a printed brochure from the DIG Frankfurt [3]. In her foreword, Mayor Dr. Eskandari-Grünberg draws attention to the terror, torture and sexual violence against the population in the Islamic Republic of Iran, whose propaganda reaches as far as Frankfurt.
The German-Israeli Society Frankfurt and the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin call on the city and the responsible authorities to consider a ban on the Quds March in Frankfurt as well and to take parallel measures to ensure that anti-Semitic propaganda is not given a stage on Frankfurt's streets.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us:
Dr. Ulrike Becker, MFFB: becker@mideastfreedomforum.org, 030 - 209 95 852
Tibor Luckenbach, DIG FFM: frankfurt@digev.de
With the support of the Deutsch-Israelische Gesellschaft e.V., Arbeitsgemeinschaft Frankfurt.
The "Bündnis 7. Oktober" is calling for a counter-rally starting at 2 pm at the Hauptwache. http://initiative-siebter-oktober.org/06-04-um-1400-auf-der-hauptwache-gegen-den-quds-tag-in-frankfurt/
The PDF is available here.
Sources:
[1] Cf. Emil Mink: Quds Day in Frankfurt, https://www.mideastfreedomforum.org/veroeffentlichungen/broschueren/quds-tag-in-frankfurt. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution also refers to the anti-Semitic character of the Quds march "Anti-Semitic 'Al-Quds' demonstration in Frankfurt am Main", https://verfassungsschutz.hessen.de/publikationen/aktuelles-und-analysen/al-quds-demonstration-in-frankfurt-am-main
[2] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/innensenator-will-al-quds-demo-kunftig-verbieten-4702174.html,https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/berlins-innensenatorin-lasst-verbot-des-al-quds-marsches-prufen-4786933.html
