President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany Josef Schuster has been awarded the Augsburg Peace Prize. In his acceptance speech, he delivered a stark warning about the rising antisemitism in Germany and called for an unequivocal commitment to Israel.
“Peace does not arise from nice words. Peace can only arise when we are honest with one another,” Schuster said at the ceremony held at the nearly full Kurhaus Theatre. The event was held under heightened security, with road closures and a strong police presence.
The recipient of this year’s prize had been announced in August during the 375th Augsburg Peace Festival celebrations.
Schuster highlighted the sharp increase in antisemitic incidents following the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023. Many Jews now live under constant threat and “have to pass through metal detectors when attending services or visiting community centres.” He criticised the frequent one-sided assignment of blame to Israel while overlooking the victims of the attacks and cautioned against using the Middle East conflict as a pretext for old anti-Jewish sentiments.
“Israel is often demonised, while Hamas is trivialised,” he said. “Dialogue can only succeed if the security of Jewish life and the existence of Israel are never called into question. Those who demonise Israel cannot credibly oppose antisemitism.”
At the same time, Schuster acknowledged progress in interreligious dialogue. “We Jews have friends and allies, particularly in the churches,” he said, urging that such dialogues be continued or revitalised where they have lapsed—“pragmatically and solution-oriented.”
Laudator Norbert Lammert praised Schuster as a peacemaker who bridges the challenges of internal and external peace. Augsburg’s Mayor, Eva Weber, emphasised that his work made Jewish life more visible and built bridges between perspectives. The prize, endowed with €12,500, honours individuals who contribute to peaceful coexistence among religions.
Born in 1954 in Haifa, Israel, Schuster is a physician and the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. His parents had fled Bad Brückenau in Lower Franconia during the Nazi era, returning to Germany shortly after his birth and settling in Würzburg. Until a few years ago, Schuster ran a medical practice in the city centre.
Previous recipients of the Augsburg Peace Prize include ZDF journalist and war correspondent Katrin Eigendorf, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, and former German President Richard von Weizsäcker. The award, presented since 1985 by the City of Augsburg and the Bavarian Protestant Church, is usually granted every three years for contributions to tolerant and peaceful coexistence of cultures and religions.
Schuster concluded his speech by stressing the need for an unbiased perspective on Israel: “I would like us to look fairly at Israel, without foam at the mouth. The images of destruction are terrible, and the suffering of the Palestinian civilian population is also distressing. Yet peace cannot arise through polite words or embarrassed silence. Peace only emerges when aggressors are no longer confused with the attacked.”
