Greta Thunberg’s pro-Palestinian statements after the terror attacks in Israel are “unspeakable”, says a German Green party minister.
Thunberg and her Fridays For Future organisation are undermining confidence in the climate change movement with their comments on the Israel-Hamas war, argues environment minister Steffi Lemke.
“The unspeakable statements” by Thunberg and her organisation Fridays For Future “about the terrorist attack on Israel destroy the great trust that many people, especially young people, have in the integrity of the movement,” says Lemke.
It is now “urgently necessary” for Germany’s branch of Fridays For Future to distance itself from its parent body and affirm its support for Israel, Lemke adds.
Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, and TikTok have both insisted they are not blocking or limiting the spread of pro-Palestine content. https://t.co/JcfvtjNA0o
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) October 27, 2023
Germany’s Fridays For Future branch has already had to distance itself from other branches over their near-unanimous support for the Palestinian side in recent days.
Luisa Neubauer, the head of the German branch, emphasised last week her organisation does “not agree with the content” put out by its international counterparts. The group is “outraged” by the Hamas terror attacks on civilians, it previously said.
Climate activists outside Germany have meanwhile taken openly pro-Palestine stances on the current conflict.
Thunberg’s post demanding people “stand with Gaza” prompted accusations last week of anti-Semitism.
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was charged with disobeying a police order on Friday, less than two months after she was convicted and fined for the same offence. https://t.co/xfPRFJSRnW
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) September 17, 2023
One photo of the activist sitting with an octopus soft toy has provoked particular controversy.
Anti-Semitic conspiracy theorists often use octopus imagery to claim Jews have global control over the media and international politics.
Thunberg ended up deleting the post, saying she was unaware of the connotation and that the octopus instead was linked to her autism.
Fridays For Future however has continued with accusations the Western media is disproportionately pro-Israel, accusing media outlets across Europe and the United States of lying to the public to bolster support for the Middle-Eastern democracy.
The majority of MEPs sitting on the European Union’s Committee on Budgetary Control committee failed to show up to a meeting with the European Commission’s Olivér Várhelyi on October 26 regarding the bloc’s Palestine spending. https://t.co/mxVX68G2HO
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) October 27, 2023
