In recent days we have been observing a shift in tone in parts of federal politics in the debate about the war between Israel and Hamas. We note this with concern and irritation. In particular, the wording used by the CDU foreign minister Johann Wadephul on 27.05.2025 regarding an alleged “forced solidarity” meets with very great incomprehension on our part. Such rhetoric insinuates that Germany is being “forced” to stand at Israel’s side and has not done so of its own free will up to now. The question therefore arises how terms such as “forced solidarity”, which further strip the debate of objectivity, are supposed to be helpful.
There was also talk of a supposed “instrumentalisation” of the fight against antisemitism. At a time when hatred of Jews is directed at us worldwide, and in Germany too, on a scale rarely seen, this wording may murmur suggestively, but it still fails to explain how an alleged “instrumentalisation” could actually take place in concrete terms. That stokes resentment without creating clarity through concrete information and facts.
The statement made within the same debate on the same day by the former SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich, that there is a “self-imposed captivity” on account of “the historical burden of National Socialism”, is likewise reminiscent of rhetoric that one would normally have located outside the democratic spectrum. That is where the debate about a “cult of guilt” and similar fantasies, on account of which one is supposedly obliged to hold back one’s opinion on Israel, is usually at home.
But the choice of words is not only irresponsible because it plays into the hands of the antisemites – the statements are also wrong in substance. That one is not allowed to criticise Israeli government policy or specific military operations is a myth. Israel is criticised day in, day out around the world – in Germany too. Even according to the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which is wrongly accused of preventing criticism of Israel’s policies, this is legitimate. A fundamental ban on criticism of Israel simply does not exist, nor is it demanded by anyone.
We, as Jewish citizens of Germany, would like to see from senior politicians the measure of level-headedness that such a complex situation requires, and not a release of pressure through the use of pent-up buzzwords.
