German party runs for EU parliament under slogan 'Israel is our misfortune'

The Neo-Nazi party Die Rechte turned the slogan "The Jews are our misfortune!" into "Israel is our misfortune!"

By URI BOLLAG
Far-right supporters of the party "Die Rechte (The Rights) carry placards of 90-year-old Ursula Haverbeck, who is imprisoned for her denial of the Holocaust during their May Day rally through the streets of Duisburg, Germany, May 1, 2019 (photo credit: WOLFGANG RATTAY / REUTERS)
Far-right supporters of the party "Die Rechte (The Rights) carry placards of 90-year-old Ursula Haverbeck, who is imprisoned for her denial of the Holocaust during their May Day rally through the streets of Duisburg, Germany, May 1, 2019
(photo credit: WOLFGANG RATTAY / REUTERS)
A German political party running in the European Parliament’s May 23-26 election is using a slogan coined by Nazi-forerunner Heinrich von Treitschke in the 19th century and popularized by the Nazi newspaper Der Stürmer.
The neo-Nazi party Die Rechte (The Right) turned the slogan “The Jews are our misfortune!” (“Die Juden sind unser Unglück!”) into “Israel is our misfortune!” The party’s chances to win any seats in the vote seem slim.
“At a time when positive national consciousness is being demonized by the rulers, oppositional politics is the highest civic duty,” the party states on its website, pledging to halt immigration, fight corruption and punish “national traitors.”
Ursula Haverbeck, 90, serves as The Right’s chairwoman. She is currently serving a two-year sentence for Holocaust denial, which is a criminal offense in Germany.
The party has also announced on its website that it will be holding a demonstration in Dortmund on Saturday under the slogan “70 years BRD [Federal Republic of Germany]? We don’t celebrate. Creating sovereignty, defending Europe.”
Posting a picture of party activists holding “Israel is our misfortune” signs, Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon took to Twitter on Thursday to condemn the party and express his incredulity at the party’s existence in Germany.
“Apparently this is legal in German,” Nahshon wrote. “How can this be allowed?!?! In Germany of all places?”

German Ambassador to Israel Susanne Wasum-Rainer replied to the tweet: “On behalf of the German Gov... Felix Klein, Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism & counterparts from the ‘Länder’ have condemned the campaign of ‘Die Rechte’ in strongest terms & called on the municipalities to take action.”
The ambassador added that she was in “full agreement that antisemitism cannot be tolerated.”