Courts have ruled that deny the right to life Israel in general it should not be prohibited. The High Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia (OVG) in Münster partially overturned the prohibition decision by the Düsseldorf Administrative Court. This relates to the conditions of the pro-Palestinian demonstration planned in the state capital on Saturday.
Düsseldorf police headquarters has prohibited organizers from denying the right to exist of the State of Israel in any form during the meeting. In addition, it was ordered that the slogans “From the river to the sea”, “There is only one country – Palestine 48” and “Yalla, yalla, Intifada” mentioned in the meeting motto may only be read once at the beginning of the meeting and cannot be used again afterward.
The court saw no criminal offense in denying Israel’s right to exist
In this regard, the High Administrative Court ruled: “The general prohibition against challenging the right to exist of the State of Israel is unlawful. Denying the right to exist of the State of Israel does not in itself constitute a criminal offense.” The court further announced that “critical examination” of the founding of the state of Israel “and demands for peaceful change in existing conditions fundamentally protect freedom of expression.” Police did not mention any special circumstances “that must be included in order for the statement to be classified as incitement to hatred.” The decision cannot be appealed.
At the same time, the High Administrative Court upheld a lower court’s decision to ban the slogan “Yalla, yalla, Intifada” because it could be understood “as an expression of sympathy for acts of violence committed by Palestinian radicals.” The ban on the slogan “From the river to the sea” is also maintained. The court confirmed this by saying that it was a symbol of the banned Palestinian Islamic organization, Hamas. In this case, clarification in an expedited procedure is not possible. However, the ban on “There is only one country – Palestine 48” was lifted because it was considered illegal.
