BERLIN.- German authorities will open a investigation to find out how the winners at the Berlin film festival could make unacceptable statements against Israel regarding his war against Hams, a government spokeswoman said on Monday.
Since Sunday, the Berlinale has been accused of spreading anti-Semitism because several filmmakers denounced, from the stage during the awards ceremony, the genocide that they believe the Israeli army is committing in the Gaza Strip.
In that Palestinian territory, almost 30,000 people, mainly civilians, died in the Israeli offensive, according to the Ministry of Health of the Islamist movement Hams.
Among the directors in the spotlight is the Palestinian documentary filmmaker Basel Adra, who received an award for a film about the expulsions of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. From the stage, he accused Israel of massacring the Palestinian population, and was greatly applauded by the audience.
German justice
However, the filmmakers omitted that the Israeli offensive was triggered by an attack by Hamas militiamen in southern Israel on October 7, which led to the deaths of at least 1,160 people, mostly civilians.
“It is unacceptable that the terrorist attack in Hams on October 7 was not mentioned,” said a government spokeswoman, Christiane Hoffmann, during a press conference on Monday.
The head of government, Olaf Scholz, considered that a unilateral position cannot be tolerated, the spokesperson indicated. “In any debate on this issue, it is important to keep in mind the event that led to this new escalation of the conflict in the Middle East,” he insisted.
The Minister of Culture, Claudia Roth, an environmentalist, announced that she would study the incidents that occurred together with the mayor of the capital, Kai Wegner, a conservative.
The festival is financed mainly by the German State. When asked if this support was going to be reconsidered, Hoffmann responded that what is currently being sought is to ensure that these types of events do not occur again.
Germany, traumatized by the terror of the Holocaust, when the Nazis massacred 6 million Jews, has been one of the main supporters of Israel and defends that country’s right to defend itself after the attacks of October 7.
On Sunday, the festival management indicated that the filmmakers’ statements during the ceremony were individual opinions and independent of the contest, but that it understands the indignation caused by comments perceived as too partial.
FUENTE: AFP
