A court in the German city of Stuttgart, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, is seeking to force COVID-19 vaccinations for an 85-year-old Jewish composer and a Holocaust survivor, sparking outrage among German journalists and one Jewish community leader. A regional court has overruled the decision.
Austrian-based German-language website Report24 first reported on Tuesday of the case of Holocaust survivor Inna Zhvanetskaya. She was born in Ukraine in 1937. Holger Fischer, the attorney for Zhvanetskaya, said on his Telegram account on Thursday that a regional court in Stuttgart overruled the lower court, barring the forced vaccination.
Report 24 said Zhvanetskaya is slated to “be sent, against her will, to a doctor, who will vaccinate her twice against COVID-19.” The news outlet added that after the vaccination she will be “institutionalized in a closed psychiatric facility.”
According to Report24, ”An exclusive video shows: She is neither of unsound mind nor endangering herself or others. She’s just afraid for her life,” rendering the psychiatric admittance questionable.
How did people react to the ruling?
Martin Arieh Rudolph, chairman of the Jewish community in Bamberg, Bavaria sent a letter to the president of the Jewish community in Stuttgart, Barbara Traub, asking if she and the Jewish community could intervene to help Zhvanetskaya.
Traub has recently faced criticism for failing to take action against Stuttgart’s promotion of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign on its website, as well as the pro-Iran regime partnership between the city of Freiburg and Isfahan.
The Post sent a press query to Traub.
The Post also sent a press query to Michael Blume, the civil servant assigned to ensure Jewish life and fight antisemitism in Stuttgart. Last week, a regional court classified Blume as antisemitic. German Jews, the Wiesenthal Center and Israelis have urged Blume to resign.