Federal Ministry of the Interior
Faeser bans Hamas and the Samidoun network in Germany
Nancy Faeser spoke in Berlin on Thursday
© Michael Kappeler / DPA
Hamas’ attack on Israel also has consequences in Germany. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser bans the Palestinian organization and another network. Anyone who gets involved there in the future must expect consequences.
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has issued a ban on the activities of the radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas in Germany. The SPD politician also announced the dissolution of the pro-Palestinian association Samidoun in Berlin on Thursday. As a terrorist organization, Hamas aims to destroy the state of Israel, Faeser explained in a statement. “As an international network, Samidoun spread anti-Israel and anti-Jewish propaganda under the guise of a “solidarity organization” for prisoners in various countries.”
In the case of Hamas and the foreign structures of Samidoun, it is a so-called ban on activity, and for the German structures of Samidoun it is also a ban on associations. The consequences are similar. Any assets will be confiscated and internet presence and social media activities will be banned. Anyone who continues to be active for the organizations is committing a criminal offense.
Anyone who gets involved with Hamas in the future must expect consequences
Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU and the USA. According to estimates by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Germany, there are around 450 people behind it, many of whom are German citizens. However, there is no official branch of the Islamist group in this country. Associations that were close to the movement were banned a few years ago. The ban on activity that has now been issued remains an additional measure.
Samidoun is a group that describes itself as the “Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network.” According to constitutional protection officers, Samidoun belongs to the radical Palestinian organization PFLP (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine) and is hostile to Israel. The PFLP itself propagates the armed struggle against Israel, but, unlike Hamas, is not religious. Samidoun caused outrage just a few hours after the bloodbath in Israel on October 7th because members of the network distributed sweets in honor of Hamas on Sonnenallee in the Neukölln district of Berlin.
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Shortly after Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel at the beginning of October, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) announced a ban on the two organizations’ activities. Such an announcement in advance of a ban is very unusual.