Prayer for peace draws Berliners of all faiths
German authorities fear the fighting raging between Israel and the militant Palestinian Islamist group Hamas could trigger antisemitic attacks in Germany, and German leaders have been calling for more solidarity with Jewish citizens. As emotions run high, Berliners of different faiths turned out for an interreligious prayer for peace.
Transcript
00:00 Fears of anti-Semitic attacks are on the rise in Germany.
00:04 In response, Berliners were asked to protect the synagogue.
00:08 More than 300 people followed that call.
00:13 I feel desperate about this situation.
00:17 As a German, I find it unbearable that anti-Semitic demonstrations are able to take place in our
00:22 city Berlin and in Germany.
00:27 This Jewish place of worship in southern Berlin was the first in the city where an official
00:32 service took place in 1945 after the Holocaust.
00:37 German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited the synagogue to show solidarity.
00:42 Hamas' killings and violence have not yet ended.
00:47 For today, they have called for new acts of violence against Jewish communities worldwide.
00:54 So for German Jews, this Friday is a day of fear.
00:59 That is why my place is among them today.
01:07 Another show of unity a few kilometers away.
01:10 Here in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, people chose silence.
01:17 And an inter-religious prayer for peace uniting people of different faiths.
01:21 It's not so easy to find words to address so many different people.
01:30 Of course I see that Muslims are also affected.
01:35 That's why we chose silence.
01:37 Because many have their emotions, their pain in there.
01:40 It is complicated for all of us.
01:47 Above all, we need the voice of the middle ground, the voice of those who want to approach
01:50 each other and communicate.
01:53 Despite the differences, they have a common wish.
01:57 Peace in Israel and Gaza.
01:59 [BLANK_AUDIO]