The Dortmund police have described Greta Thunberg as “prone to violence” and banned a pro-Palestinian protest camp because of her. After criticism, the authority is now explaining its decision.
The police have defended their actions against an appearance by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg at a pro-Palestinian protest camp in Dortmund. Emergency services banned and dismantled the camp on Tuesday evening shortly before Thunberg’s planned visit. Dortmund police chief Gregor Lange emphasized that there was a real risk of anti-Semitic crimes. The emergency services would not have had any other means than to completely ban the camp and thus Thunberg’s appearance.
In an initial statement from the police about their operation, Thunberg was also described as a “violent person”. The police then described this as an “internal error”. Thunberg then accused the German authorities of threatening and silencing activists.
The “Dortmund Students for Palestine” initiative announced Thunberg’s appearance at the protest camp near the Technical University at short notice. The event was then assessed against the background of the “recent riots at pro-Palestinian demonstrations with your participation,” the police said. “An emotionalization and incitement of the group of people attracted by Ms. Thunberg” was to be expected.
However, the description of the 21-year-old as a “violent person” in an initial press release was “concreted following a new police examination”: “It is not she as a person who is prone to violence, her influence on the meeting can lead to violent acts against people and carry property,” police said. The police only made this correction transparent when asked by the media.
Police President Lange emphasized. “There was a real danger that anti-Semitic crimes would be committed. Violent acts like those in Berlin were also predictable.” The presence of Thunberg and her sympathizers “would have significantly changed the character of the previously peaceful protest camp.”
Thunberg, on the other hand, made massive accusations against the German authorities. “Germany threatens and silences activists who speak out against the genocide and occupation in Palestine,” says the 21-year-old in a video message published on the X platform. She called for people to support the student movement in Dortmund and everywhere where “people are confronted with oppression.” “We will not be silenced,” she concluded.
The Swede, who gained worldwide fame as a climate activist, has repeatedly expressed solidarity with the Palestinians and accused Israel of genocide since the Islamist Hamas attack on Israel a year ago and Israel’s subsequent military action in the Gaza Strip. Critics accuse her of being one-sided. On Monday, the anniversary of the Hamas massacre in Israel, Thunberg was at a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Berlin, where, according to police, participants also threw bottles at police officers and chanted anti-Israel slogans.
The “Dortmund Students for Palestine” initiative, which moved into the camp near the Technical University in June, announced legal steps against the police’s actions. “We won’t let this get us down,” said a representative of the group in a video posted on Instagram.
The domestic policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Alexander Throm, is now calling for an entry ban for Thunberg. “Anyone who comes here to agitate against Israel and denigrate our police has no place in Germany,” the CDU politician told the “Bild” newspaper.