Large Palestinian flag in front of the German parliament... activist arrested
In Berlin, a 22-year-old man climbed a 30m flagpole, lowered the unification flag, and raised the Palestinian flag... police investigation
Quick Look
On the 8th (local time), in front of the Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, activists supporting Palestine climbed the 30-meter flagpole, lowered the German unification flag, and hoisted the Palestinian flag and were arrested by the police.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Palestinian support activists climbed the flagpole in front of the German Bundestag, displayed the Palestinian flag, and broadcast it live on social media.
(Berlin = Yonhap News) Correspondent Gye-yeon Kim = Activists supporting Palestine climbed the flagpole of the German Bundestag building, hung up the Palestinian flag, and broadcast it live on social media.
According to the daily Tagesspiegel, at around 11:15 a.m. on the 8th (local time), in front of the Bundestag building in downtown Berlin, a 22-year-old man climbed a 30-meter high flagpole, threw the German flag on the ground, and hung a Palestinian flag.
In front of the building, men aged 20 and 32 broadcast the scene on TikTok.
Authorities brought in a fire ladder truck and attempted to pull the activist down. However, the activist secured himself to the top of the flagpole with a climbing belt and shouted slogans in support of Palestine, before coming down on his own after 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The authorities took down the Palestinian flag they had raised, but the German flag could not be raised again because the flagpole was damaged.
The three-color German flag they removed was first hoisted on October 3, 1990, when East and West Germany were officially unified, and is also called the 'unification flag.' At 10 meters wide and 6 meters tall, it is the largest existing German flag and national monument.
All three activists are German nationals. The police arrested them on charges of ▲ desecrating the nation and its symbols, ▲ damaging property, ▲ trespassing into a home, and ▲ violating the Freedom of Assembly Act, but released the two who were broadcasting live.
Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner said this happened a day before November 9, a significant day in German and Jewish history, and called it "an affront to our democracy." November 9th is the day the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and the day the so-called 'Kristallnacht' incident occurred in 1938, when the Nazis destroyed a large number of Jewish shops and religious facilities.
On November 13 last year, three activists were arrested after riding a work lift atop Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate and hanging a banner that read, 'No more massacres, freedom for Palestine.'
Open Questions
- What are the specific judicial punishment consequences for the arrested activists?
- When will the damaged flagpole and Unification flag be restored?
