At Union Berlin’s Europa Conference League home match against Maccabi Haifa, there was reportedly an anti-Semitic attack in the stands. Police are investigating, Union apologise
For some German fans of Maccabi Haifa, the Europa Conference League match at Union Berlin (0:3) on Thursday evening turned into a nightmare. They allegedly became victims of an anti-Semitic attack by supporters of the Bundesliga club in the Olympiastadion.
As Union explained in a statement on Friday afternoon, the victims – all members of the Junge Forum der Deutsch-Israelischen Gesellschaft e.V. – had reported “anti-Semitic insults, fisticuffs and an attempt to set fire to an Israel flag”. In response to a dpa request, the police had already stated that they were investigating several still unknown persons on suspicion of incitement of the people. According to the report, the perpetrators allegedly “verbally provoked, threatened and threw beer at the Maccabi fans” and made xenophobic remarks.
“This behaviour is shameful and not tolerable,” club president Dirk Zingler is quoted as saying in Union’s statement. “We apologise to those affected. Anti-Semitism unfortunately still exists in our society, which is why it also shows itself in the stadium. However, we will never tolerate discrimination in our ranks. It is important to remain vigilant and to work tirelessly against it. We support the police investigation with all sources of information at our disposal. “
Other Union fans showed solidarity with the victims in the stadium
Other Union fans had shown solidarity with the victims in Block 14, who eventually moved to the visitors’ block. “Thank you for the wave of solidarity online and to the Union fans who showed solidarity with us in the stadium!” said the Young Forum of the German-Israeli Society in the Union press release. “The majority of Union supporters gave Maccabi a friendly welcome and celebrated football with them.”
Despite the ugly incidents – another man had been temporarily deprived of his liberty for shouting “Sieg Heil” several times after the final whistle – Zingler saw the match as “a good example” of “breaking down prejudices through meeting and contact with each other”. More than 23,000 people had come together “in a cordial atmosphere. Many of us had good meetings and discussions with our guests from Haifa and representatives of Jewish organisations and associations in Berlin yesterday and in the run-up to the game.