Programme 2024

7 October, the war in Gaza and the debate in Germany

4-Day Focus at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele,
curated by Saba-Nur Cheema and Meron Mendel

13 to 16 June 2024

Events

as part of “Reflexes & Reflections”

Learn more

House

The Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and Israel’s responding attack on the Gaza strip not only drive Palestinians and Israelis far apart, they also divide Germany. Hardened fronts have developed both in public and in private. Many people are silent, afraid of saying something that will be seen as wrong. Others are vociferous, particularly on social media, and demand that a stand must be taken. In recent months Jewish people have experienced a new level of physical and verbal attacks while at the same time Palestinians and Muslim people have been subject to blanket suspicion and anti-Islamic crimes are on the rise. In Germany, terrorism and war are reinforcing old prejudices and creating new ones.

In four days that focus on this topic, the Berliner Festspiele wishes to create a space for nuanced reflection without adopting reflex positions on one of what is assumed to be only two possible sides. The interdisciplinary programme is curated by the political scholar Saba-Nur Cheema and the historian and author Meron Mendel. Both of them have been engaged in Jewish-Muslim dialogue for many years, work to counter anti-Semitism and Islamophobia and paid particular attention to the effects of conflict in the Middle East on the way we live together in Germany.

The programme consists of numerous podium discussions, in which Jewish, Muslim, Israeli, Palestinian and German voices come into conversation with each other, and a forum with representatives of peace initiatives from Israel. The participants include Eva Illouz, Yassin Musharbash, Mira Awad, Sapir Heller, Osama Zatar, Alena Jabarine, Per Leo, Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib and Muriel Asseburg. A stand-up comedy programme by Shahak Shapira and Abdul Kader Chahin and guest performances of the play “House” by Amos Gitai are presented as artistic elements of the programme.

Throughout the 4 days, a library with a selection of books and documentary films on the topic will be set up in the Upper Foyer in the Haus der Berliner Festspiele. The photo exhibition “Overlaps” by Ali Ghandtschi can also be seen there. Visitors are welcome there before and after the events for which they have a ticket.

Co-operation statement Young Islam Conference (JIK)

As a programme of political education that is aimed at both young Muslims and non-Muslims and works on issues around Islam, participation and living together in our post-migrant society, we have felt the effects of the Hamas attack and the ongoing war in Gaza very strongly, including those in Germany. In order to maintain a mutual exchange and to avoid getting lost behind hardened fronts, we need a genuine debate that does not play off minorities and marginalised groups against each other but rather provides them with the opportunity to convey their viewpoints and stories in a nuanced manner with all their salient details. We need a multi-perspectival approach with input from those affected from a variety of contexts. The core of our work and our task as a co-operation partner for “Reflexes & Reflections” is therefore to facilitate encounters, especially between people with Muslim, Jewish, Palestinian and Israeli backgrounds, to open spaces where conversation and reflection can take place, where internal perspectives can be shared and, at the same time, new stories can be heard. We wish for more alliances in our society, including alliances between Jews and Muslims who support a peaceful and equal life together.

Dr. Asmaa Soliman, Programme Lead for the Young Islam Conference (JIK) and the Competence Network “Living Together in the Migration Societies” for the Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe

Co-operation statement Anne Frank Zentrum

The massacres by Hamas on 7 October have caused great insecurity among the Jews living in Germany. As an institution dedicated to historical, political and anti-Semitism-critical education, in the months that followed we have received an enormous increase in requests for further training regarding issues of anti-Semitism relating to Israel and the Middle East conflict. Participants demonstrated great uncertainty about speaking and taking action in light of the frequently hardened debates. There is a great need for a critical and multiperspectival exploration of the events in Israel and Gaza, but also in particular about the reactions and debates that have taken place in Germany. The 4-day focus “Reflexes & Reflections. 7 October, the war in Gaza and the debate in Germany” responds to this need to create room for discussion and critical debate and to bring together different viewpoints. We look forward to taking part!

Franziska Göpner, Anne Frank Zentrum, Director of Touring Exhibitions and Head of the Co-ordinating Body for the Competence Network on Anti-Semitism

Funded by

Cooperation Partner