German politician calls for Greta Thunberg to be banned from attending pro-Palestinian protests

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The 21-year-old climate activist was invited to a pro-Palestinian protest camp in Dortmund after attending a similar protest in Berlin on Monday.

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Politicians in Germany think that climate activist Greta Thunberg should be banned from entering the country over her participation in pro-Palestinian protests, according to the domestic policy spokesman for Germany’s biggest opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union.

Alexander Throm told BILD newspaper that it would be “not only appropriate but even necessary that the Federal Minister of the Interior issues an entry ban against this anti-Semite in the future”.

Throm said of the climate activist, “Anyone who enters Germany to incite hatred against Israel and denigrate our police has no place in Germany.”

Thunberg had accepted an invitation to attend a pro-Palestinian protest camp at the University of Dortmund, according to the event’s organisers.

The event was cancelled shortly afterward, with police saying that Thunberg’s attendance would attract more people than initially registered for the event.

Thunberg reacted to the cancellation in a video on Instagram, where she accused Germany of “silencing activists.”

“Germany threatens them (activists) when they speak out against the genocide and occupation in Palestine,” Thunberg said, draped in a traditional Palestinian keffiyeh.

Organisers of the event posted on social media that the short-notice cancellation was unjust, saying they would file an appeal against it after they were asked to quickly dismantle tents as a result of police orders.

Thunberg was last seen in Berlin on Monday attending a protest marking the anniversary of the 7 October attacks. Four demonstrators were detained after setting off pyrotechnics and setting fire to car tires.

The Swedish national criticised the conduct of the German police during the protest, posting on social media that she “didn’t have words” to describe how police officers handled “peaceful protesters.”

Thunberg has had several run-ins with authorities over her participation in pro-Palestinian protests, including one in Stockholm in early September where she was forcibly removed by police officers.

Last week, she was detained by Belgian police after taking part in a demonstration calling for an end to European Union subsidies for fossil fuels.



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