‘Jews banned’ sign posted underneath Palestinian flag in German bookstore window
The sign went on to read: "“Nothing personal. Not even antisemitism. I just can’t stand you”
Israel’s ambassador to Germany has stated that “the 1930s are back”, after a shop in a German town displayed a sign saying “Jews are banned from here”.
German officials have also widely condemned the action of a books and antiques shop owner in the town of Flensburg, in the country’s north, whose sign also stated “Nothing personal. Not even antisemitism. I just can’t stand you”. The sign was posted directly beneath a large Palestinian flag in the shop’s window.
The owner, Hans Felten-Reisch, was quoted by a local newspaper as saying the sign was due to the war in Gaza, saying “there are Jews living in Israel, and I can’t decide who is for or against the attacks”. He refused to remove the sign, which has been reported to the police. Local media reports suggest that the shopfront has since been graffitied by members of the public in response, with messages including “f*** Nazis” and “Nazis out”.
Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador, shared a photo of the sign alongside a photo of Nazi-era antisemitic signs to the public.
“The 1930s are back”, he wrote in German.
“In Flensburg, ‘Jews forbidden’ signs are once again displayed in shop windows – in the year 2025. Just like back then in the streets, cafés, and shops of the 1930s. That’s exactly how it started – step by step, sign by sign. It’s the same old hatred, just in a different font. The signs were followed by broken glass, fire, and destruction.”
The senior diplomat went on to say that this hatred “was never about Zionism. It was always about Jewish life. And it never ends harmlessly. Politicians must not wait until it’s too late – they must act now, before words turn into deeds again. Jewish life must be safe and visible in Germany.”
In similar language to the ambassador, Felix Klein, Germany’s antisemitism commissioner, told Die Welt that “this is anti-Semitism in its purest form, and of course, there are direct references to the Nazi era, when Jews were boycotted and there were many such signs.”
Earlier this week, the country marked 90 years since the introduction of the Nazi Nuremberg Laws, which formalised the systematic exclusion, degradation, and disenfranchisement of Jewish women and men in Germany.
On Monday, the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, described how “we are experiencing a new wave of antisemitism in our country. This federal government and I are declaring war on this antisemitism.
“We will not tolerate it – not even under the guise of the supposed freedom of art, culture, and science.”
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