German Protestant leaders seek unity before October 7 anniversary

Germany's Evangelical Church (EKD) on Friday called for a united stand against hostility towards Jews and Muslims alike ahead of the second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Criticism of the actions of a government or party to a conflict should never lead to verbal or physical attacks against people – not against Palestinians or Muslims, or against Jews, EKD council head Kirsten Fehrs said with the leaders of all 20 regional churches.

The effects of the Gaza war are being felt in Germany and around the world, they said in a joint statement.

"Open and violent forms of anti-Semitism, especially in the form of hostility toward Jews related to Israel, are clearly evident," according to the bishop and the regional churches.

Even Israel's right to exist is being questioned, they noted.

At the same time, Palestinians and Muslims are "under blanket suspicion of proximity to terrorism or Hamas."

Both circumstances are unacceptable, the statement stressed.

All church communities and citizens are called upon to "resolutely oppose any form of exclusion, hostility, and violence," it added.

On October 7, 2023, hundreds of gunmen of the Palestinian militia Hamas and allied groups stormed into southern Israel and killed around 1,200 people and abducted more than 250 hostages to the Gaza Strip, sparking the current war.

More than 66,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks in the sealed off coastal region since the start of the bloodshed, according to its Hamas-controlled health authority.