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Too Little, Too Late? Antisemitism and Germany’s New Naturalization Test
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser addresses the 2023 meeting of the German Islamic Conference (DIK). Photo: Reuters/Bernd Elmenthaler
JNS.org – What do you call a Jewish house of prayer? When was the State of Israel founded? Which cities in our country have the largest Jewish communities?
These are just three of the 20 questions about Israel and Jewish life that Germany will be introducing into its naturalization test for prospective citizens. Announcing the changes last week, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said their purpose was to root out and exclude the bigots. “Anyone who does not share our values cannot obtain a German passport. We have drawn a crystal-clear red line here,” she stated. “Antisemitism, racism and other forms of contempt for humanity rule out naturalization.”
Some of the additional questions are more philosophical in nature and deliberately so. For example, the question “What is the basis of Germany’s special responsibility to Israel?” carries four possible answers: “membership of the EU,” “Germany’s Basic Law,” “the Christian tradition” and the correct response, “from the crimes of National Socialism.” That, of course, underlines the centrality of the Nazi Holocaust to postwar Germany’s commitment to a democratic order. Similarly, the question “On what legal basis was the State of Israel founded” includes the options “by a resolution of the Zionist Congress,” “a proposal by the German government,” “a proposal by the USSR” and the correct answer, “a resolution of the United Nations.” That emphasizes, rightly, that Israel’s sovereign legitimacy was recognized by the world’s leading international organization. Another question, “Who can join the Jewish Maccabi sports clubs?” includes the options “only Germans,” “only Israelis,” “only religious people” and the correct answer, “everyone.” The point here, which escaped The Washington Post’s reporter on the story, who called this question “mysterious,” is to puncture the antisemitic myth that Jews only look out for other Jews and only provide services to other Jews.
Generally, I think naturalization tests for immigrants are a good idea. When I became an American citizen seven years ago, I remember some of my native-born American friends joking that I likely knew more about the United States than most Americans because you have to swot up on the answers to questions like, “How many judges sit on the Supreme Court?” and “Why was the Civil War fought?” And in the U.S. naturalization test, you are also asked about political affiliations—my examining officer, noticing my very Jewish name, was apologetic and a little embarrassed when she asked me if I was or had ever been a Nazi, but anyone who admitted as much, or indeed to having been a Communist, would be rather unlikely to pass. In that sense, there is a trustworthy precedent for what the Germans are introducing now.
The larger consideration is how effective such a test might be. You don’t have to be particularly bright to memorize answers like “synagogue,” “1948” and “1,700 years ago”—the correct answer to the question, “When was the first Jewish community in Germany established?” So, if you’re a hardened antisemite who wants a German passport, you have the option of acquiescing to this distasteful test in the name of a higher purpose. No doubt, there will be many prospective immigrants who will try just that.
However, just because the test can’t guarantee that antisemites won’t slip through the net doesn’t mean that the proposal is faulty. The test’s purpose is to project, gently but firmly, Germany’s core values and the need for prospective citizens to conform to those values. And if you can’t or won’t do so, the message essentially says, then you are free not to come here in the first place.
The test is also an acknowledgment that antisemitism can be imported. For much of the postwar period, antisemitism in Germany was mainly a problem on the far right; however, with the explosion of political violence in the 1960s and 1970s, it became a problem on the far left as well. But during the last 20 years—and particularly with the arrival of around 2 million immigrants from the Middle East in 2015, as civil war raged in Syria—the problem has taken a distinctly Islamist turn. In the weeks since the Hamas pogrom of Oct. 7, Germany has witnessed up to 29 antisemitic incidents per day, many of them executed by Arab or Turkish-origin immigrants. Not all the incidents involve violence—indeed, most of them concern vandalism and the spread of ugly antisemitic propaganda online and at demonstrations—but there is little doubt that whatever the nature of the offense, the German authorities want to minimize the amount of antisemitism in their midst.
To my mind, there’s another deeper question here: Are these measures, however welcome, too late in arriving? After all, it’s fair to say that with a Jewish community of just over 100,000, Germany is presently experiencing a genuine crisis of antisemitism that won’t be resolved by filtering out prospective immigrants who give the wrong answers on a naturalization test.
Much the same can be said for the rest of the European Union; in the Netherlands, for example, where a Jewish community of 30,000 has endured an 800% increase in antisemitic incidents since the Oct. 7 atrocities, Jewish leaders have run out of patience. “Our youth is no longer safe at educational institutions: they are canceled, attacked, intimidated,” Chanan Hertzberger, the chair of the CJO Jewish communal organization, told the newspaper De Telegraaf last week. “It is rife, and we have had enough. We are normal Dutch people and also want to be considered and treated as such. Our civil liberties are at stake; more and more Jews feel threatened and intimidated, and are hiding Jewish symbols.” Like Germany, Holland is home to large numbers of Moroccan, Turkish and other immigrants from cultures where hostility and enmity towards Jews is a fact of life. Just as in Germany, any efforts by the Dutch authorities to be discerning about who they admit in the future won’t address the problem on their streets and in their universities right now.
The flip side of the naturalization test is what it tells us about the status of Jewish communities in these countries during the present period. If antisemitism is such an overwhelming problem that it needs to feature prominently in a naturalization test, it suggests to those Jews in its sights that insecurity will be a permanent feature of their lives, however much the authorities might wish otherwise. Perhaps they should think about moving somewhere else—like Israel, which was created as a haven for Jews. European governments may not be giving up on their Jews, but they shouldn’t be surprised if their Jews give up on them.
The post Too Little, Too Late? Antisemitism and Germany’s New Naturalization Test first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Says Missile Launched by Yemen’s Houthis ‘Most Likely’ Intercepted

Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addresses followers via a video link at the al-Shaab Mosque, formerly al-Saleh Mosque, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 6, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
The Israeli army said on Saturday that a missile fired from Yemen towards Israeli territory had been “most likely successfully intercepted,” while Yemen’s Houthi forces claimed responsibility for the launch.
Israel has threatened Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement – which has been attacking Israel in what it says is solidarity with Gaza – with a naval and air blockade if its attacks on Israel persist.
The Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group was responsible for Saturday’s attack, adding that it fired a missile towards the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
Since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis, who control most of Yemen, have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea, disrupting global trade.
Most of the dozens of missiles and drones they have launched have been intercepted or fallen short. Israel has carried out a series of retaliatory strikes.
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Iran Holds Funeral for Commanders and Scientists Killed in War with Israel

People attend the funeral procession of Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists and others killed in Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 28, 2025. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Large crowds of mourners dressed in black lined streets in Iran’s capital Tehran as the country held a funeral on Saturday for top military commanders, nuclear scientists and some of the civilians killed during this month’s aerial war with Israel.
At least 16 scientists and 10 senior commanders were among those mourned at the funeral, according to state media, including armed forces chief Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Revolutionary Guards commander General Hossein Salami, and Guards Aerospace Force chief General Amir Ali Hajizadeh.
Their coffins were driven into Tehran’s Azadi Square adorned with their photos and national flags, as crowds waved flags and some reached out to touch the caskets and throw rose petals onto them. State-run Press TV showed an image of ballistic missiles on display.
Mass prayers were later held in the square.
State TV said the funeral, dubbed the “procession of the Martyrs of Power,” was held for a total of 60 people killed in the war, including four women and four children.
In attendance were President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior figures including Ali Shamkhani, who was seriously wounded during the conflict and is an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as Khamenei’s son Mojtaba.
“Today, Iranians, through heroic resistance against two regimes armed with nuclear weapons, protected their honor and dignity, and look to the future prouder, more dignified, and more resolute than ever,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who also attended the funeral, said in a Telegram post.
There was no immediate statement from Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since the conflict began. In past funerals, he led prayers over the coffins of senior commanders ahead of public ceremonies broadcast on state television.
Israel launched the air war on June 13, attacking Iranian nuclear facilities and killing top military commanders as well as civilians in the worst blow to the Islamic Republic since the 1980s war with Iraq.
Iran retaliated with barrages of missiles on Israeli military sites, infrastructure and cities. The United States entered the war on June 22 with strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
TRUMP THREAT
Israel, the only Middle Eastern country widely believed to have nuclear weapons, said it aimed to prevent Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.
Iran denies having a nuclear weapons program. The U.N. nuclear watchdog has said it has “no credible indication” of an active, coordinated weapons program in Iran.
Bagheri, Salami and Hajizadeh were killed on June 13, the first day of the war. Bagheri was being buried at the Behesht Zahra cemetery outside Tehran mid-afternoon on Saturday. Salami and Hajizadeh were due to be buried on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would consider bombing Iran again, while Khamenei, who has appeared in two pre-recorded video messages since the start of the war, has said Iran would respond to any future US attack by striking US military bases in the Middle East.
A senior Israeli military official said on Friday that Israel had delivered a “major blow” to Iran’s nuclear project. On Saturday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement that Israel and the US “failed to achieve their stated objectives” in the war.
According to Iranian health ministry figures, 610 people were killed on the Iranian side in the war before a ceasefire went into effect on Tuesday. More than 4,700 were injured.
Activist news agency HRANA put the number of killed at 974, including 387 civilians.
Israel’s health ministry said 28 were killed in Israel and 3,238 injured.
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Pro-Palestinian Rapper Leads ‘Death to the IDF’ Chant at English Music festival

Revellers dance as Avril Lavigne performs on the Other Stage during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 30, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Dylan Martinez
i24 News – Chants of “death to the IDF” were heard during the English Glastonbury music festival on Saturday ahead of the appearance of the pro-Palestinian Irish rappers Kneecap.
One half of punk duo based Bob Vylan (who both use aliases to protect their privacy) shouted out during a section of their show “Death to the IDF” – the Israeli military. Videos posted on X (formerly Twitter) show the crowd responding to and repeating the cheer.
This comes after officials had petitioned the music festival to drop the band. The rap duo also expressed support for the following act, Kneecap, who the BCC refused to show live after one of its members, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – better known by stage name Mo Chara – was charged with a terror offense.
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