Antisemitism in Die Linke: shouts of "death to the IDF" at a campaign event

The German far-left party Die Linke (The Left) is once again at the center of a controversy over antisemitism after slogans against Israel and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were chanted during a campaign event in Berlin-Neukölln.

The episode, which occurred at the end of August, reignited the debate about the positions of certain sectors of the German left regarding Israel and antisemitism. The controversy is particularly relevant because within Die Linke coexist sectors that explicitly condemn antisemitism alongside strongly pro-Palestinian and anti-Zionist currents.

“Yalla Yalla Intifada” and “death to the IDF”

The most recent incident occurred during an electoral event organized by Die Linke in Neukölln. The rapper Dahabflex was invited to participate and during his performance, he played his song “Stop the Genocide.”

During the performance, slogans such as “Yalla Yalla Intifada” and “Death to the IDF” were heard. The Berlin police opened an investigation to determine whether some of the expressions uttered during the event could constitute a crime.

The case generated strong criticism because the local leaders of Die Linke present at the event did not intervene during the slogans. The party's main candidate in Berlin, Elif Eralp, later distanced herself from what happened and described the performance as a mistake.

Antisemitism within sectors of Die Linke

The controversy is not limited to a musical performance. The problem facing Die Linke is the existence of internal sectors that maintain positions considered hostile towards Israel and that, in certain cases, use rhetoric that can lead to antisemitism.

The 2024 report from the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution of Germany noted that certain sectors of the German radical left maintain anti-Israeli and anti-Zionist positions, and that solidarity with Palestine constitutes an important area of mobilization for radical left groups. The agency also documented the participation of German left-wing extremists in protests related to the Middle East conflict.

The same office distinguishes between legitimate criticism of Israel and positions that may constitute antisemitism or affect the constitutional order. This distinction is crucial: questioning the policies of a government does not in itself constitute antisemitism, but the demonization of Israel, the use of anti-Jewish stereotypes, or the justification of violence against Israelis and Jews can cross that line.

An internal current generating increasing scrutiny

Within the Berlin structure of Die Linke, there is also the Landesarbeitsgemeinschaft Palästinasolidarität, an internal group dedicated to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. The group has been criticized for its closeness to the BDS movement and for positions considered excessively one-sided regarding Israel.

According to an investigation cited by Euronews, this sector went so far as to describe the massacre perpetrated by Hamas on October 7, 2023, as an “act of resistance” and called for supporting Palestinian resistance “in all its forms.”

The controversy also extends to Die Linke's youth organization. In Thuringia, a representative of Linksjugend was sanctioned after making a comparison between the Holocaust and the war in Gaza. In Berlin-Neukölln, moreover, the youth organization was pointed out for distributing stickers in schools featuring an assault rifle alongside the Palestinian flag.

Berlin records thousands of crimes linked to protests

The debate unfolds in a particularly tense context in the German capital. According to figures from the Berlin Police cited by Euronews, between October 7, 2023, and March 13, 2026, nearly 12,500 crimes related to pro-Palestinian demonstrations were recorded.

Among them were 2,277 violent crimes, 3,453 property damages, 2,205 propaganda offenses, and 1,046 cases of incitement to hatred. The figures correspond to the environment of the demonstrations and do not imply that all participants committed crimes or that all protests were extremist.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution also noted that most pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Germany took place without incidents and that most of their participants were not extremists. However, it documented the presence of Islamist groups, Palestinian extremists, and sectors of the German radical left in certain mobilizations.

Die Linke tries to distance itself, but the controversy continues

The party leadership claims to defend the protection of Jewish life and to have adopted specific guidelines against antisemitism. Eralp also condemned the slogans from the Neukölln event and stated that Die Linke supports Israel's right to exist.

However, the episode once again exposed the deep internal divisions within Die Linke regarding Israel, Palestine, and antisemitism. Even the internal organization of Solidarity with Palestine publicly defended the controversial event and the Neukölln district after the criticisms.

The case thus leaves an open question within the German left: how far can solidarity with Palestine go before it becomes demonization of Israel or a justification for violence against Israelis and Jews.

For Die Linke, the challenge is not only to publicly condemn an isolated episode but to determine how to respond to internal sectors that use slogans or rhetoric that have been flagged as antisemitic. The debate is already permeating the Berlin structure and has become one of the main focal points of controversy surrounding the party.