Attorneys Protesting Palestinian Oppression in Berlin
In the heart of Berlin, protests echo with the chant "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." Despite recent court acquittals, the use of this slogan remains a legally contested issue, with ongoing policing and prosecutions.
On July 30, 2025, the Tiergarten District Court acquitted an activist who repeatedly used the chant, ruling it was not a criminal offense [1]. This judicial recognition that the slogan itself is not illegal has not stopped the Berlin police and prosecutors from continuing to criminalize the slogan in practice [1].
Immediately after the acquittal, another person chanting the same slogan was arrested and taken for identification, highlighting the ongoing police practices that conflict with recent court decisions [1].
A group of 51 Berlin lawyers, including Ahmed Abed, Christina Clemm, and Nadija Samour, among others, have signed an open letter demanding an immediate halt to the prosecution of people using this slogan [1]. The letter criticizes the police and prosecution authorities for continuing to enforce allegedly unlawful arrests and charges related to the chant despite court rulings [1].
The political climate in Germany, especially following the 2025 elections, shows a strong parliamentary consensus supporting Israel (Staatsräson), limiting potential political allies to oppose this trend. This affects law enforcement and policy toward Palestinian solidarity activism [2][3].
Thousands of prosecutions linked to Palestinian solidarity, including the use of slogans such as this one, continue in Berlin, with many arrests, trials, and investigations ongoing [3].
The slogan's history dates back to the 1960s, when Palestinian actors used it to demand a secular state. A ruling by the regional court, which convicted a defendant for using the slogan, is outdated, according to the open letter [1].
The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression has stated that blanket criminalization of the slogan is not in line with international human rights norms [4]. Scholars, human rights experts, and many Jewish groups recognize the call for the Palestinians' right to self-determination in the slogan [4].
Despite a report from the Berlin State Criminal Office stating that there is no evidence of Hamas using the chant [5], the German authorities appear to treat the slogan as an expression linked to support for Hamas, which complicates its legal and political standing. German authorities have criminalized the chant on grounds of anti-Semitism or support for terrorism, despite growing public debate and some judicial pushback [2][4].
As the debate continues, it is clear that the use of the chant "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" remains a contentious issue, reflecting a broader political and social struggle over how Palestinian solidarity expressions are treated in Germany.
[1] Link to the open letter [2] [Source 1] [3] [Source 2] [4] [Source 3] [5] [Source 4]
- Despite the Tiergarten District Court's acquittal of an activist who chanted "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," ongoing police practices continue to criminalize the slogan.
- A group of 51 Berlin lawyers have demanded an immediate halt to the prosecution of people using this slogan, criticizing the police and prosecution authorities for allegedly unlawful arrests and charges.
- The slogan's history dates back to the 1960s, where it was used to demand a secular state by Palestinian actors, but a ruling convicting a defendant for using the slogan is considered outdated, according to an open letter signed by lawyers.
- Despite a report from the Berlin State Criminal Office stating that there is no evidence of Hamas using the chant, German authorities treat the slogan as an expression linked to support for Hamas, complicating its legal and political standing.
