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German state of Saxony-Anhalt now requires citizenship applicants to sign statement in support of Israel
BERLIN (JTA) — Recognizing Israel’s right to exist is now mandatory for those who want to become German citizens in the former East German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
Applicants living in the state will have to confirm in writing “that they recognize Israel’s right to exist and condemn any efforts directed against the existence of the State of Israel.” Saxony-Anhalt’s interior minister, Tamara Zieschang, a member of the center-right Christian Democratic Union party, said Tuesday that the rule went into effect at the end of November.
The new state law is fueled by concerns over antisemitism here, which has spiked across Germany and the rest of Western Europe following the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7.
In its decree, reportedly shared internally at the end of November, Saxony-Anhalt also requires naturalization agents to be on the lookout for antisemitic and anti-democratic attitudes among applicants.
The state regulation comes as the Bundestag, or German parliament, is about to pick up debate again on a new law originally intended to speed up and ease the process of naturalization. The law might have even allowed new citizens to hold on to their original passports.
But that debate was put off in November, with some politicians arguing that a rise in domestic antisemitism after Oct. 7 did not allow for relaxed citizenship laws. Debate is due to resume this month.
“Without a doubt, the new law will have some words about antisemitism, whereby an application for citizenship could be denied not only because of violence or a violation of the law, but if there is some information about antisemitic attitudes,” Bundestag member Helge Lindh told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency in a telephone interview.
But it is not yet clear whether a national law will also require a signed statement of loyalty to Israel, said Lindh, who is rapporteur for migration and asylum policies for the Social Democratic Party, the center-left party led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
A national loyalty statement was reportedly proposed after Oct. 7, but critics have argued that it would target people of Arabic or Muslim background and that it would be a safer bet legally to focus on the antisemitism litmus test.
“People have to sign their support of the constitution already,” Lindh continued, adding that “many specialists say that just to confirm you are not antisemitic does not mean you are not antisemitic.”
The new law in Saxony-Anhalt “is a quite strange development,” he added, “because citizenship law is a federal law. In the end, it does not make sense if you have different rules for citizenship in the different German states.”
Some Israel advocates here are still celebrating the new state law.
“I think it is amazing, and it is something I would expect from every state,” said Sacha Stawski, president and founder of the Frankfurt-based pro-Israel initiative Honestly Concerned. Although there are legal grounds for denying citizenship, “Germany has been extremely lenient in all states regarding this issue,” he said. “We don’t need any more antisemites in this country, we really don’t.”
According to news reports, Zieschang expressed solidarity with Israel immediately after the Hamas attack. Echoing the words of former Chancellor Angela Merkel in her historic address to Israel’s parliament in March 2008, she said that Israel’s right to exist “is and remains” a “raison d’état,” or essential tenet of the German state.
While states may enact their own rules regarding naturalization requirements for applicants living within their jurisdiction, there already have been attempts to tighten naturalization requirements on a national level. Most recently, on Nov. 15, the CDU faction in the Bundestag, referring to the Hamas attacks, proposed a draft law “to terminate the residence and prevent the naturalization of antisemitic foreigners” in Germany.
Back in June 2021, the CDU already had proposed expelling or “preventing the naturalization of antisemitic foreigners” and requiring that citizenship applicants swear that they will not attempt to undermine the state of Israel.
They also proposed a prison sentence of at least six months and the denial or loss of financial support for asylum applicants convicted of an antisemitic crime, rather than just expulsion.
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The post German state of Saxony-Anhalt now requires citizenship applicants to sign statement in support of Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really?
JNS.org – If I asked you to name the most famous line in the Bible, what would you answer? While Shema Yisrael (“Hear O’Israel”) might get many votes, I imagine that the winning line would be “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). Some religions refer to it as the Golden Rule, but all would agree that it is fundamental to any moral lifestyle. And it appears this week in our Torah reading, Kedoshim.
This is quite a tall order. Can we be expected to love other people as much as we love ourselves? Surely, this is an idealistic expectation. And yet, the Creator knows us better than we know ourselves. How can His Torah be so unrealistic?
The biblical commentaries offer a variety of explanations. Some, like Rambam (Maimonides), say that the focus should be on our behavior, rather than our feelings. We are expected to try our best or to treat others “as if” we genuinely love them.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, in his classic text called the Tanya, argues that the actual feelings of love are, in fact, achievable provided that we focus on a person’s spirituality rather than how they present themselves physically. If we can put the soul over the body, we can do it.
Allow me to share the interpretation of the Ramban (Nachmanides), a 13th-century Torah scholar from Spain. His interpretation of the verses preceding love thy neighbor is classic and powerful, yet simple and straightforward.
“Do not hate your brother in your heart. You shall rebuke him, but do not bear a sin because of him” by embarrassing him in public. “Do not take revenge, and do not bear a grudge against your people. You shall love your fellow as yourself, I am God” (Leviticus 19:17-18).
What is the connection between these verses? Why is revenge and grudge-bearing in the same paragraph as love your fellow as yourself?
A careful reading shows that within these two verses are no less than six biblical commandments. But what is their sequence all about, and what is the connection between them?
The Ramban explains it beautifully, showing how the sequence of verses is deliberate and highlighting the Torah’s profound yet practical advice on how to maintain healthy relationships.
Someone wronged you? Don’t hate him in your heart. Speak to him. Don’t let it fester until it bursts, and makes you bitter and sick.
Instead, talk it out. Confront the person. Of course, do it respectfully. Don’t embarrass anyone in public, so that you don’t bear a sin because of them. But don’t let your hurt eat you up. Communicate!
If you approach the person who wronged you—not with hate in your heart but with respectful reproof—one of two things will happen. Either he or she will apologize and explain their perspective on the matter. Or that it was a misunderstanding and will get sorted out between you. Either way, you will feel happier and healthier.
Then you will not feel the need to take revenge or even to bear a grudge.
Here, says the Ramban, is the connection between these two verses. And if you follow this advice, only then will you be able to observe the commandment to Love Thy Neighbor. If you never tell him why you are upset, another may be completely unaware of his or her wrongdoing, and it will remain as a wound inside you and may never go away.
To sum up: Honest communication is the key to loving people.
Now, tell me the truth. Did you know that not taking revenge is a biblical commandment? In some cultures in Africa, revenge is a mitzvah! I’ve heard radio talk-show hosts invite listeners to share how they took “sweet revenge” on someone, as if it’s some kind of accomplishment.
Furthermore, did you know that bearing a grudge is forbidden by biblical law?
Here in South Africa, people refer to a grudge by its Yiddish name, a faribel. In other countries, people call it a broiges. Whatever the terminology, the Torah states explicitly: “Thou shalt not bear a grudge!” Do not keep a faribel, a broiges or resentment of any kind toward someone you believe wronged you. Talk to that person. Share your feelings honestly. If you do it respectfully and do not demean the other’s dignity, then it can be resolved. Only then will you be able to love your fellow as yourself.
May all our grudges and feelings of resentment toward others be dealt with honestly and respectfully. May all our grudges be resolved as soon as possible. Then we will all be in a much better position to love our neighbors as ourselves.
The post Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on during the day he visits the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday dismissed as nonsensical the report that President Donald Trump would endorse Palestinian statehood during his tour to the Persian Gulf this week.
“This report is nonsense,” Huckabee harrumphed on his X account, blasting the Jerusalem Post as needing better sourced reporting. “Israel doesn’t have a better friend than the president of the United States.”
Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The leader’s first trip overseas since he took office comes as Trump seeks the Gulf countries’ support in regional conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and curbing Iran’s advancing nuclear program.
However, reports citing administration insiders claimed that Trump has also set his sights on the ambitious goal of expanding the Abraham Accords. These agreements, initially signed in 2020, normalized relations between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. The accords are widely held to be among the most important achievements of the first Trump administration.
The post ‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Unless significant progress is registered in Sunday’s round of nuclear talks with Iran, the US will consider putting the military option back on the table, sources close to US envoy Steve Witkoff told i24NEWS.
American and Iranian representatives voiced optimism after the previous talks that took place in Oman and Rome, saying there was a friendly atmosphere despite the two countries’ decades of enmity.
However the two sides are not believed to have thrashed out the all-important technical details, and basic questions remain.
The source has also underscored the significance of the administration’s choice of Michael Anton, the State Department’s policy planning director, as the lead representative in the nuclear talks’ technical phases.
Anton is “an Iran expert and someone who knows how to cut a deal with Iran,” the source said, saying that the choice reflected Trump’s desire to secure the deal.
The post US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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