Islamists call for caliphate in Germany amid claims of prejudice
‘Caliphate is the solution … stop the media hate’ ‘[It is] not only very dangerous but also a completely marginal group among Germany’s Muslims’
MORE than 1,000 people marched through Hamburg at the weekend calling for a Muslim caliphate in Germany.
Protesters gathered in the northern city for a mostly peaceful demonstration against Islamophobia, but among the masses were calls for the setting up of an Islamic state.
Joe Adade Boateng, the leader of Muslim Interaktiv, which organised the rally, said in a speech at the march that Germany needed a “righteous caliphate” to remedy the misrepresentation Muslim groups have faced in the media.
He was greeted with cheers of Allahu akbar (God is great) by a mostly male crowd, some of whom were holding up signs reading “Caliphate is the solution” and “Stop the media hate”.
People were also holding up copies of the tabloid newspaper Bild, with stories about Islam that had been smeared with red paint.
Since war broke out between Israel and Hamas, Muslim groups have criticised Germany’s strong support for the Israeli government. At times, that criticism has led to calls for more radical action, with Islamist groups flourishing on German social media.
Muslim Interaktiv, a group which is currently under investigation by Hamburg’s domestic intelligence for “extremism”, has grown to 24,000 followers on Tiktok. Mr Adade Boateng calls himself “Raheem Boateng” online and posts videos explaining why homosexuality is a sin.
The group had previously organised a demonstration of 3,500 people against the public burning of the Koran in Sweden in February last year, and held an anti-israel demonstration following the Hamas terror attacks on Oct 7.
Earlier this month, Andy Grote, the Hamburg senator from the Social Democratic Party, singled out Muslim Interaktiv as he called for “hard and decisive action” against Islamic extremists.
Lamya Kaddor, a Green MP, described the group as “not only very dangerous but a completely marginal group among Germany’s Muslims” that has taken advantage “of the Gaza issue”.
Volker Beck, the president of the German-israeli Society, asked why the group had not been banned over its connections with Hizb ut-tahrir, a fundamentalist political organisation that Britain has already proscribed as a terrorist group.
Calls for the German government to take action against the group come as politicians have been reluctant to soften support for Israel despite other world leaders saying its army has been too aggressive in its war in Gaza and has caused a humanitarian disaster.
Germany has been accused of suppressing free speech and imperilling democracy with protest bans since Oct 7.
Yanis Varoufakis, the outspoken former Greek finance minister, and Ghassan Abu Sittah, a doctor who was in Gaza for the first few months of the war, said that Germany risked damaging its reputation internationally.
Mr Varoufakis’s lawyer said he has documents that show his client has been banned from Germany after he was due to speak at a pro-palestine congress in Berlin that was cancelled by authorities.