These flags had been displayed outside city halls and other public buildings in a show of solidarity with Israel following an attack by the Gaza-based resistance movement Hamas on October 7.
In the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Wurttemberg, a total of at least 12 cities witnessed Israeli flag burning, according to the news program Tagesschau. On Monday night, a man removed the Israeli flag displayed outside the city hall in Aachen and set it ablaze. In Witten, the flag was taken down on two separate occasions, with the most recent incident occurring on Friday night. Additionally, the flag hoisted outside a Protestant church in Bad Saeckingen was pelted with eggs.
According to Bild newspaper, a man in his 50s attempted to tear down the flag in the city of Pirna (Saxony) but was stopped by the police. Incidents of Israeli symbols being taken down, stolen, or destroyed were reported in various places, including Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate), Erfurt (Thuringia), Stralsund (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), and Stade (Lower Saxony).
In certain cases, the authorities were able to identify the individuals responsible for these acts. In Schwerin (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), the suspect was a 17-year-old man of Iraqi origin who acted in a group of people, some of whom had a "migrant background," as stated by the police.
Germany has experienced a surge in anti-Israel incidents in the aftermath of deadly attacks by Israel warplanes on Gaza, with Palestinian officials reporting over 2,750 people killed in the attacks.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been prohibited in several German cities.