A court in Berlin convicted a pro-Palestinian activist of condoning a crime, after she shouted, "From the river to the sea.”
Judge Birgit Balzer ruled that Ava Moayeri , a 22-year-old German-Iranian citizen, violated German law by shouting the anti-Israel chant.
Judge Balzer also rejected the pro-Palestinian young woman’s claims that this is a chant that is under the protection of the freedom of speech law. The judge also criticized rulings of previous courts in Germany that accepted the claim that this chant is accepted under the German freedom of expression law.
"I cannot comprehend the logic of previous rulings by German courts that ruled that the chant is 'ambiguous.’ It is clear that it denies the right of the State of Israel to exist. This opinion may be covered by freedom of speech in Germany, but the use of the chant must be evaluated in the context of the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.” “That,” said the Judge, “is the elephant in the room.”
She also added that "the Germans have an obligation to make Jews in the country feel 'safe and comfortable,' especially in light of the increase in antisemitic crimes, since the Hamas attack on October 7."
The German-Iranian woman claimed in her defense that she shouted the chant, which is identified with Palestinian supporters, as she only intended to express “support for peace and justice in the Middle East.”