In response to the legal prohibition on any activity by or support of the militant organization Hamas, hundreds of police officers searched the homes of Hamas members and supporters in Germany on Thursday morning, November 23.
Samidoun, the group responsible for a celebration in Berlin of Hamas' October 7 assault in southern Israel, was disbanded, and the ban was put into effect by the German government earlier this month. The October 7 surprise attack on Israel was carried out by 3,000 terrorists who stormed across the border, killed 1,200 people, and took 240 hostages.
Children and the elderly made up the bulk of the civilian casualties. At an outdoor celebration, more than 360 individuals were killed, many of them in the midst of horrifying acts of violence committed by the terrorists. Entire families were also slain in their houses.
Raids on Suspected Hamas Members, Followers
Reportedly, the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network was behind an October 7 event in which a group of activists gave out pastries on a Berlin street in celebration of Hamas' assault.
According to The Times of Israel, the domestic intelligence agency in Germany thinks that there are around 450 Hamas members in Germany. Their efforts to bolster the foreign terrorist organization vary from demonstrations of sympathy and propaganda to financial support and fund-raising.
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said, "We are continuing our consistent action against radical Islamists. By banning Hamas and Samidoun in Germany, we have sent a clear signal that we will not tolerate any glorification or support of Hamas' barbaric terror against Israel."
The searches took place mostly in Berlin. Those were intended to implement the restrictions and to further investigate the groups, according to a statement released by the German interior ministry. A total of 15 locations in Berlin, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Schleswig-Holstein were searched.
More than 300 police officers scoured 11 different sites in Berlin to recover evidence and assets. There were seven searches pertaining to Hamas and four pertaining to Samidoun. According to DPA, a German news source, the searches were conducted mostly at the residences of supporters and the offices of a Palestinian group.
Combating Antisemitic Groups
German authorities have been cracking down on antisemitism-supporting organizations in the aftermath of Israel's continuing battle against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israel has pledged to completely wipe out the terrorist organization from the strip.
On Tuesday, November 21, police in the southern German state of Bavaria searched the houses of 17 persons suspected of engaging in online antisemitic hate speech and threatening Jewish people. German police also conducted 54 raids last week as part of an investigation into a group located in Hamburg that is accused of spreading the ideology of the Iranian government and maybe funding the operations of Hezbollah in Germany.
