Austrian Police Book Activists for Waving Israeli Flag
The waving of the Israeli flag caused “considerable offense among the Palestinian protesters,” police report says.
Vienna Police have booked criminal charges against three pro-Israeli activists for waving an Israeli flag to a group of anti-Israel demonstrators. They have been accused of waving the Israeli flag “in an extremely provocative way” causing “considerable offense among the Palestinian protesters,” Austrian media reported, citing the police statement. If found guilty, they could face up to hundred euros in fine or two days in prison.
The incident took place in early December when Europe was hit by a wave of anti-Israel protests following President Trump’s decision to formally recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. According to Jerusalem Post, the three pro-Israeli activists waved the Israeli flag in response to demonstrators chanting slogans in Arabic calling for ‘Death to Israel’ and ‘Jews, remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning,’ alluding to the annihilation of the Jewish population of Khaybar, an oasis in Saudi Arabia, at the hands of Muhammad and his army.
Media reports failed to mention if police took any action against the demonstrators calling for violence against the Jews and the destruction of Israel. Apparently in the eyes of Viennese Police, the mere presence of an Israeli flag causes a “considerable offense among the Palestinian protesters” that requires police action, but calling for genocide against Jews isn’t much of an offense.
Austrian newspaper Der Standard reported on Tuesday:
On December 8, several demonstrators gathered outside the US embassy in Vienna’s Alsergrund district under the slogan “Jerusalem: The capital of Palestine” — as Der Standard previously reported.
The incidents surrounding the demonstration are now leading to legal consequences. [Some] bystanders are being charged with criminal conduct by the Vienna State Police. They have been accused of “disturbing the public order in an particularity reckless way.”
The Background: They apparently “showed” an Israeli flag “in an extremely provocative way and manner” that caused considerable offense among the “Palestinian protesters”.
The possible punishment: Hundred euros in fines or two days in jail.
According to one of the individuals in question (name withheld by the editor) there were various flags at the demonstration, among others; the Turkish, Syrian and Palestinian flags.
When several of the demonstrators began chanting “Down with Israel”, he and one of his acquaintances, standing a few meters apart from him, rolled out an Israeli flag.
“According to my understanding of Austrian democracy, it should be permissible to hold the flag of a sovereign state,” said the student of religious pedagogy while in conversation with Der Standard. “I don’t understand how this could be a provocation.” He had been told to seek legal advice. “That’s what I am going to do,” said the 25 year-old.
Austria’s Jewish Student Union (JÖH) demanded action from the Vienna Police. “It is unacceptable that simply showing the Israeli flag on the streets of Austria is criminalized by the police as punishable provocation.”
Last month, Austria’s newly sworn-in right-wing government vowed to “fight anti-Semitism” after Israel refused to work directly with any ministers from the far-right FPÖ party.
“Anti-Semitism has no place in Austria or Europe,” the newly elected Chancellor Sebastian Kurz declared in a speech to the Austrian parliament. “We will fight all forms of anti-Semitism with full determination, both those that still exist and those that have been newly imported. That will be one of our government’s significant tasks.”
Apparently, the Vienna Police didn’t get the memo. If Chancellor Kurz sincerely wants to curb antisemitism in Austria, he has his work cut out for him.
Antisemitism is rampant in Austria’s growing Muslim population. “Among youth with Muslim background antisemitic bias is widespread,” reported the daily Der Standard last June, citing a study. The majority of young Muslims hold strong anti-Semitic views, revealed the study conducted at technical training schools across the country. Other comprehensive studies aimed at migrant youth in the country have come up with similar conclusions.
Video: Demonstrators in Berlin chanting ‘Jews, remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning’ on Saturday (December 2017)
[Cover image: screenshot via Bild]
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Comments
Sharia Law in Eurabia… so what’s new?
These students are really brave. Allign with Jewish people (and their tenets) and expect to be persecuted.
this is how it started 80 years ago and Vienna was a hotbed then too.
Now that there is a place which will welcome us, time for Jews to leave Eurabia.
The Euros are not reproducing at replacement rates and the indigenous population are mostly in old age homes having their butts wiped by the ‘guest workers’.
It is sad that a place which has the foundations of freedom give in to these base and biased ‘people’.
the USA has to keep an eye on any ‘stray nukes’ in eurabia.
canaries in the coal mine.
Unfortunately, Austria has a history of anti-semitism and it probably won’t take too much for a group of hateful muslims to revive the old feeling. It looks like the frog, (Europe) has noticed that the water is getting warmer! Do they have enough time and will to turn the fire off?
You can be absolutely sure that the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has taken note of this arrest, and is considering how to use it a precedent here.
ring ring!!
“Hello, Who is calling?”
“It’s 1939 Austria, we’re in need of some anti Semitism/anti freedom, can you spare some?”
Scream “Death to the Jews,” and the Police stand Idly by. But wave a flag “provocatively,” and you get arrested.
In order to more efficiently “protect” the Jews of Austria, I’m sure some forward thinking governmental type will propose that all Jews self identify themselves by wearing a bright yellow Star of David over their hearts.
Otherwise, how will the police and the population at large know who needs “extra” protection? [sarcasm intended]
Step 2 will be like in Moorish Spain where both Jews and Christians had to wear distinctive clothing to be easily recognized. Bleeding heart progressives will also eventually be bleed heads, bleeding arms and internally bleeding chest, abdomens and pelves from their protected majorities…. and they will still wonder what they didn’t do to stop it.
Maybe the Austrian government can help out the Jews by providing special free trains for resettlement of the Jews in the East. Might even prove a final solution to anti-semitism incidents. /sarc /sarc
The growing number of conservative patriotic Jews need to firmly expel the small but noisy and corrosive group of leftist and neocommunist Jews. The latter are anti-Israel and probably anti-Semitic. When somebody comes to cut their throats, they will praise them selves for being virtuous. In few words, because they’ll be cut short. It’s past time to kick those losers out, let them hang with their true religion, it ain’t Judaism.
@alaskabob
You said it better than I could.
Thankful every day that we have what most nations don’t find necessary…..freedom of speech.
Totalitarians, here and abroad know that freedom of speech is antithetical to their aims and that it must be blocked.
While I agree with the sentiment expressed in your post as the web becomes the dominant channel for free speech how free will it actually be when those controlling content (FB, GOOG/YouTube, TWTR) are ideologically in lock step on the left and any opinion even marginally left of center can be deemed “hate speech” and censored.
Net neutrality is but a distraction when it comes to having an open discourse in this country as the power to control the message is being concentrated into the hands of a few dominant content providers.
They have been accused of waving the Israeli flag “in an extremely provocative way” causing “considerable offense among the Palestinian protesters…”
Well, Jimmy crack corn.
How can anyone be shocked or even surprised by this? Import people that want to burn your civilization to the ground and act surprised when the fire starts.
Westerners welcoming Muslim invaders is like turkeys voting for Christmas.
Hitler’s old hometown. The more things change…
Palestinians work hard to feign being offended as a means to be offensive.
I think that Israel should annex all of the West bank, drive Palestinians out, and then resettle all the Jews from Austria there.
I understand the Austrian authorities, in order to re-invigorate certain underutilized facilities, will sentence them to be imprisoned for two days in Mauthausen–Gusen.
We killed off most of the Nazis in WW2 so Merkel et al had to import new Nazis ie Muslims.
America is NOT Europe. We left the damned place for a reason. Take a good look at Europe.
http://tourosynagogue.org/history-learning/gw-letter
“George Washington and his Letter to the Jews of Newport
‘every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and figtree, and there shall be none to make him afraid…
…For happily the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that THEY WHO LIVE UNDER ITS PROTECTION SHOULD DEMEAN THEMSELVES AS GOOD CITIZENS, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.'”
Empasis, mine. If Jews could not demean themselves good citizens, if they were largely reading the Tanakh as commanding them to drive over fellow Americans with SUVs and then knife the survivors, I wouldn’t be much of a fan of having Joooooz in the country.
But that’s not the situation.
Austria: “You can’t display that symbol on a flag, it belongs on your mandatory arm band!”
Perhaps these Jewish provocateurs were really being “arrested” in order to take them safely out of a murderous mob of Muslims. It was a very brave but foolish thing for these counter-protesters to identify themselves in that mob!
We’ll see if the charges are dropped.
Well, these days the new Nazi flag is the Iraeli one. Netanyahoo would have made a perfect mid-level member of the SS. And the policies of segregation, and inherent racism are very closely related. And you are suprised that Austria reacts?