How Germany's Holocaust "guilt" has led to suppression of pro-Palestine activists

In Germany, the crackdown on pro-Palestine speech is shaped by the German policy of "Staatsräson," or “reason of state," a concept referring to Germany's political commitment to the existence of the Israeli state.

Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza in 2023, Staatsräson has manifested itself as German military aid to Israel and heavy policing of Palestine activism inside Germany.

“Germany’s guilt regarding the Holocaust” has been “abused to justify the support of the genocidal war of Israel against the population in Gaza,” says Berlin-based lawyer Alexander Gorski, who recently represented the “Berlin Four,” three European Union citizens and one United States citizen whom Germany attempted to deport for participating in pro-Palestine campus protest.