Germany bans pro-Palestinian group Samidoun

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz looks on during a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron as they conclude a two-day government meeting in the northern German port city of Hamburg, Germany, October 10, 2023. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay Acquire Licensing Rights

BERLIN, Oct 12 (Reuters) – Germany will ban the pro-Palestinian group Samidoun, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Thursday, adding that its members were celebrating Islamist Hamas « terror » in Israel on German streets.

« Our law governing associations is a sharp sword. And we, as a strong constitutional state, will draw this sword, » Scholz said in an address to parliament in Berlin.

The group, which identifies as a Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, posted photos on Instagram on Sunday of pro-Palestinian activists distributing sweets in Berlin in celebration of Saturday’s Hamas attack in Israel.

The group has been organising pro-Palestinian protests and is now monitored by Berlin’s domestic intelligence agency, according to German magazine Der Spiegel.

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