Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Israel welcomes German leader as ally against antisemitism

Israel’s president has warmly welcomed his German counterpart and praised him as an ally in combatting antisemitism

Via AP news wire
Thursday 01 July 2021 10:34 BST
Israel Germany
Israel Germany (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Israel's president warmly welcomed his German counterpart on Monday, praising him as an ally in combatting antisemitism.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is set to meet with Israel's new Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial. He is expected to reiterate Germany's strong support for Israel.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin said that Germany has been “our strong partner in the uncompromising fight against antisemitism” and has stood with Israel against “the forces of terror who seek to wipe us off the map.”

Nazi Germany and its collaborators murdered 6 million European Jews in the Holocaust. Germany's postwar leaders have repeatedly apologized for the Nazi atrocities and the country has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in reparations to Jewish victims. Relations between Germany and Israel were difficult in the first decades after the war, but the two countries have developed close ties in recent years.

Germany launched a new initiative with the United States last week to stem an alarming rise in antisemitism and Holocaust denial around the world.

The U.S.-Germany Holocaust Dialogue seeks to reverse the trend, which gained traction during the coronavirus pandemic amid a surge in political populism across Europe and the U.S. The dialogue creates a way to develop educational and messaging tools to teach youth and others about the crimes of the Nazis and their collaborators.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in