German government calls ‘From the river to the sea’ a Hamas slogan

The pro-Palestinian chant “From the river to the sea” was banned in Germany last autumn, and the position of the country’s government evidently hasn’t softened since then. A tweet today from the German Ministry of Justice refers to the phrase as a “Hamas slogan”, and claims that “depending on the circumstances of the individual case, the use of the slogan may […] be a use of propaganda from a banned organization.” It adds, ominously: “This is punishable.”

Zur Erklärung: „From the river to the sea“ ist ein Hamas-Slogan. Für die Hamas besteht in 🇩🇪 ein Betätigungsverbot. Je nach Umständen des Einzelfalles kann deshalb die Verwendung des Slogans eine Verwendung von Propaganda einer verbotenen Organisation sein. Das ist strafbar.

— Bundesministerium der Justiz (@bmj_bund) May 13, 2024

Even in countries with robust free speech protections, the phrase has been interpreted as a call to genocide for Israelis, inspiring government pressure on private institutions to crack down on the phrase. In chanters’ defence, they don’t always know which river and sea they’re referring to…