Berlin court convicts activist for chanting 'from the river to the sea' at Gaza rally

A 22-year-old activist has been convicted of condoning a crime for chanting the slogan "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" at a rally in the German capital Berlin, in a move her defence team slammed as a suppression of free speech.

Ava Moayeri, a German-Iranian national, was arrested just days after Israel's war on Gaza began on 7 October after she was accused of "condoning the assault by Hamas" when she recited the chant on an 11 October protest near the Sonnenallee boulevard in the Neukölln district, which the activist co-organised.

Before the trial started, Moayeri said in a statement that she had stood by her words but viewed them as positioning for peace in the region rather than support for Hamas. She also asserted that she had rejected "any form of antisemitism".

The presiding judge, Birgit Balzer rejected Moayeri's defence, stating that the chant had "denied the right of the state of Israel to exist".

Balzer added that the phrase was particularly controversial in Germany, and the nation has an obligation to make Jewish people in the country feel "safe and comfortable" after its role in the horrific Holocaust, during which some six million Jews were systematically murdered.

The Moayeri was ordered to pay a €600 fine.

In Germany, condoning a crime can result in a three-year prison sentence or a fine.

A spokesperson for the court, Lisa Jani, said that this was probably the first time specifically using a "politically charged" phrase.

Before the case, Jani said if found guilty, it would begin the lengthy process of appealing through higher tribunals as the ruling "would not be binding" as the trial was in "the lowest court".

Moayeri's legal team said the chant must be seen as a "central expression of the global Palestine solidarity movement".

Her lawyer Alexander Gorski condemned the verdict, calling it a win for "state oppression" of protesters, adding that his team would challenge it.

"From the river to the sea" has been used in pro-Palestine protests around the world since the 1960s, demanding justice for all Palestinians within the historic borders of Palestine, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.

Pro-Israel supporters claim the slogan calls for the "eradication" of Israel and is "antisemitic".

German authorities declared the slogan forbidden and a criminal offence in November following the 7 October attacks. Nancy Faeser, the interior minister, banned the phrase, calling it a "Hamas slogan".

Following Faeser’s directive, German police have used the chant to revoke permission for pro-Palestine protests or conditionally allow the demonstrations to take place as long as the chant would not be used.

At the same time, the justice minister, Marco Buschmann, said the phrase could contribute to "antisemitic incitement" and condoning the Hamas attacks on Israel on 7 October.

Germany has been cracking down on pro-Palestine activism and protests, being a strong supporter of Israel. Its support is on the matter of ‘Staatsräson’, or reason of state, over its responsibility for the Holocaust.