Israeli embassy in Germany proud to be Bushido target

BERLIN (JTA) — Israel’s embassy here tweeted that it was “proud to be among the targets” of the German rapper Bushido, who changed his Twitter profile to a map of the Middle East sans Israel.

“First women, then gays, now Israel: We are proud to be among the targets of integration prizewinner Bushido,” the embassy reportedly tweeted.

Bushido, who reportedly has more than 285,000 followers on Twitter, stirred controversy over the weekend after tweeting the map with a Palestinian flag over the state of Israel with the words “Free Palestine.”

German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich responded that the map “doesn’t serve the interest of peace, but instead sows hate.”

The rapper, who is of German and Tunisian descent, won a 2011 Bambi Prize, a German media award, for successful integration — a decision that had shocked many in the media who are familiar with his controversial lyrics, which have been widely criticized as anti-gay and misogynistic.

Bushido now reportedly is tweeting “Bambi for sale.”

Ruprecht Polenz, who heads the German Parliament’s foreign relations committee, told the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that it was “a scandal that a German musician who reaches so many people should question Israel’s right to exist in this manner.”