Antisemitic crime in the German capital remains at a persistently high level, with hundreds of new incidents recorded over the past year, according to the Berlin Public Prosecutor’s Office. While demonstrations linked to the Gaza war have declined, attacks against Jews continue unabated, authorities warn.
In 2025, 820 new antisemitic offences were registered in Berlin, the city’s antisemitism commissioner at the Office of the Attorney General, Florian Hengst, told the German Press Agency (dpa). The figure marks a sharp increase compared with previous years: 757 cases were recorded in 2024, and 589 in 2023.
However, Hengst cautioned that the figures are not fully comparable, as changes to statistical recording methods were introduced in the second half of 2025. Since then, the authorities have also included antisemitic chants shouted at demonstrations related to the Middle East conflict. This notably includes the slogan “From the river to the sea”, which had previously been recorded exclusively under offences linked to the Gaza conflict.
In addition to these figures, the authorities registered 2,450 further cases in 2025 in which an antisemitic motive was at least suspected. By comparison, 4,069 such cases were recorded in 2024. While this represents a numerical decline, Hengst warned against interpreting it as an improvement in the overall situation.
“The decrease is likely linked to developments in the Middle East,” he said. “Although the number of demonstrations has fallen significantly, I do not see any real easing when it comes to antisemitic incidents.”
According to the prosecutor’s office, cases continue to include incitement to hatred, the use of symbols of unconstitutional organisations, property damage involving antisemitic graffiti, and verbal abuse of Jewish people, both in public spaces and online. Physical assaults also continue to occur “to a not insignificant extent”, Hengst added.
He noted that the situation in Berlin has changed markedly since the terrorist attack carried out by the Islamist group Hamas against Israel on 7 October 2023, with a sustained rise in hostility directed at Jewish individuals and institutions.
