Fuss about Instagram post
Allegations of anti-Semitism overshadow the Berlinale
February 25, 2024, 7:12 p.m
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The Golden and Silver Bears have been presented, but the Berlinale awards ceremony still resonates. After statements on stage, Berlin’s mayor Wegner, among others, spoke of anti-Semitism. An Instagram post that has since been deleted has also caused massive criticism.
After the Berlinale awards ceremony on Saturday, allegations of anti-Semitism were made. The background includes an appearance by filmmaker Ben Russell. At the event he went on stage with a Palestinian scarf and made allegations of genocide because of Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip. The audience applauded.
“What happened yesterday at the Berlinale was an intolerable relativization,” wrote Berlin’s mayor Kai Wegner about the incident on the Internet service X (formerly Twitter). “Anti-Semitism has no place in Berlin, and that also applies to the art scene,” he made clear. “I expect the new management of the Berlinale to ensure that such incidents do not happen again,” Wegner continued.
“After the events of Saturday, we have to question whether it can stay that way and how we will deal with it in the future,” said the FDP chairwoman of the Bundestag culture committee, Anikó Glogowski-Merten, to the portal The Pioneer. The Green politician Konstantin von Notz spoke on X of a “perfidious perpetrator-victim reversal”. CSU General Secretary Martin Huber spoke of a “disgrace”. He also criticized Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth for not intervening.
Filmmaker called for a stop to arms deliveries
There were also allegations against the Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra, whose film “No other Land” received the Panorama Audience Award in the documentary film category. Adra therefore turned against German arms deliveries to Israel. However, the critics complained that Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th was not mentioned at the event. The film “No other Land” deals with the expulsion of Palestinians from villages in the West Bank by the Israeli army.
At the beginning of the gala, the co-director of the Berlinale, Mariette Rissenbeek, made it clear that there was no place at the Berlinale for “hate speech, anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim hatred and any form of discrimination.” She described the Gaza war as a “humanitarian catastrophe.” “We call on Hamas to immediately release the hostages and we call on Israel to do everything possible to protect the civilian population in Gaza and ensure that lasting peace can return to the region. The fighting “We have to stop.”
Fuss about Instagram post
In addition, the Berlinale has now distanced itself from an anti-Israel Instagram post about the Middle East conflict that was previously published on an account from the Berlinale Panorama series. “These posts do not come from the festival and do not represent the attitude of the Berlinale,” said the Berlinale in its Instagram story. “We immediately deleted it and launched an investigation into how this incident could have happened.” The film festival announced that it would file a criminal complaint against unknown persons.
Screenshots from the account of the Panorama section of the Berlinale were circulating on X, formerly Twitter. One photo featured the slogan “Free Palestine – From the River to the Sea.” The sentence means that there should be a free Palestine in an area from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean – where Israel is now located.