An Adolf Hitler lookalike attends a demonstration commemorating the 31st anniversary of the death of Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess, in Berlin Saturday, Aug 18, 2018. Hess died 1987 in a prison in Berlin. (Christoph Soeder/dpa via AP)
BERLIN (AP) — Hundreds of neo-Nazis waving flags with the colors of the German Reich marched through central Berlin Saturday, protected from counter-protesters by police in riot gear.
Berlin police spokesman Thilo Cablitz said officers had to physically remove some left-wing demonstrators who had staged sit-down protests along the route of Saturday’s march.
He added that stones and bottles were thrown at some of the far-right protesters, but couldn’t immediately say how many people were injured.
The far-right protesters, including an Adolf Hitler lookalike, wore white shirts to commemorate the 31st anniversary of the death of high-ranking Nazi official Rudolf Hess and carried banners with slogans such as “I regret nothing.”
People carry a banner reading ‘I don’t regret anything’ during a demonstration commemorating the 31st anniversary of the death of Hitler’s deputy Rudolf Hess, in Berlin Saturday, Aug 18, 2018. Hess died 1987 in a prison in Berlin. (Christoph Soeder/dpa via AP)
Hess, who received a life sentence at the Nuremberg trials for his role in planning World War II, died on Aug. 17, 1987.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Editionby email and never miss our top stories
Earlier this month, German police said 401 anti-Semitic crimes were reported throughout the country in the first half of this year, a 10.7 percent increase from the 362 hate crimes reported in the first six months of 2017.
The data also showed the vast majority of the crimes (349) were perpetrated by neo-Nazis or other far-right extremists. Police said six of the anti-Semitic crimes reported in 2018 so far were motivated by “religious ideology,” which would include attacks motivated by anti-Israel hatred.
But Jewish officials contested that claim, saying many more attacks were carried out by Muslim extremists than recorded by police.
Advertisement
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
