BERLIN: A prominent British-Palestinian surgeon who volunteered in Gaza hospitals during the first weeks of the Israel-Hamas war said he was denied entry to Germany Friday to take part in a pro-Palestinian conference — an event that police later ended early.
Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta said he arrived at Berlin airport on Friday morning before being stopped at passport control, where he was held for several hours and then told he had to return to the UK
Airport police said he was refused entry due to “the safety of the people at the conference and public order,” Abu Sitta told The Associated Press by phone. There was no immediate comment from German federal police.
Abu Sitta said his ban was to last until Sunday, covering the planned duration of the Berlin conference he was to attend, entitled the Palestine Congress. The gathering was to discuss a range of topics, including German arms shipments to Israel and solidarity with what organizers called the Palestinian struggle.
Berlin police said later Friday they pulled the plug on the event, attended by up to 250 people, on its first day after a livestream was shown of a person who is banned from political activity in Germany. They wouldn’t identify the person, but said they decided after a legal assessment to end the congress and asked those attending to leave.
Organizers wrote on social network X that the conference was “banned by the police without reason.”
Germany remains one of Israel’s staunchest defenders, even at a time of growing international outrage over the soaring Palestinian death toll in Gaza, which has surpassed 33,000.
German officials have stressed Israel’s right and duty to defend itself since the start of the war — though their tone has gradually shifted, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock increasingly decrying the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza and calling on Israel to allow more aid to reach the territory.
Shortly after Hamas’ Oct. 7. attack on Israel, the German government implemented a formal ban on activity by or in support of Hamas.
Since the war erupted, Germany has clamped down on many pro-Palestinian activities and demonstrations, with officials citing fears of possible antisemitic or anti-Israel incitement.
The hard line has broad political support at home, but has drawn criticism.
“Germany’s deportation of Dr. Abu Sitta is a naked act of authoritarian censorship, more in line with the policies of dictatorships like Saudi Arabia and China than a rights-respecting democracy,” Sarah Leah Whitson, the executive director of Washington-based human rights watchdog Democracy for the Arab World Now, or DAWN, said in a statement.
Abu Sitta, who recently volunteered with Doctors Without Borders in Gaza, has worked during multiple conflicts in the Palestinian territories, beginning in the late 1980s during the first Palestinian uprising. He has also worked in other conflict zones, including in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
Friday’s congress was viewed with great wariness by German officials before it started and was heavily policed.
Earlier on Friday, German Interior Ministry spokesperson Maximilian Kall told reporters in Berlin that federal security authorities had been in touch with their local counterparts in the capital “about questions of, for instance, entry bans,” he said. He added that he couldn’t give details.
Prominent surgeon says he was denied entry to Germany for a pro-Palestinian conference
https://arab.news/5czhr
Prominent surgeon says he was denied entry to Germany for a pro-Palestinian conference
- Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta said he arrived at Berlin airport on Friday morning before being stopped at passport control, where he was held for several hours and then told he had to return to the UK
- Abu Sitta said his ban was to last until Sunday, covering the planned duration of the Berlin conference he was to attend, entitled the Palestine Congress
‘Hero’ who disarmed Bondi gunman recovers in hospital as donations pour in
- Sydney resident Ahmed Al-Ahmed seized rifle from one of the gunmen
- Ahmed was shot in hand and arm his family says
- Australia PM said Ahmed showed ‘best of humanity’
SYDNEY: Donations for a Sydney man who wrestled a gun from one of the alleged attackers during a mass shooting at Bondi Beach have surged past A$1.1 million ($744,000), as he recovers in hospital after surgery for bullet wounds.
Forty-three-year-old Ahmed Al-Ahmed, a Muslim father-of-two, hid behind parked cars before charging at one of the gunmen from behind, seizing his rifle and knocking him to the ground.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Ahmed’s bravery saved lives.
“What we’ve seen in the last 24 hours was the worst of humanity in a terrorist act. But we also saw an example of the best of humanity in Ahmed Al Ahmed running toward danger, putting his own life at risk,” Albanese told state broadcaster ABC News.
He was shot twice by a second perpetrator, Albanese said. Ahmed’s family said he was hit in the hand and arm.
Australian police on Monday said a 50-year-old father and his 24-year-old son carried out the attack at a Jewish celebration on Sunday afternoon, killing 15 people in the country’s worst mass shooting in almost 30 years.
HAILED A HERO FOR DISARMING THE GUNMAN
Ahmed’s father, Mohamed Fateh al Ahmed, told ABC News in an interview that his son was an Australian citizen and sells fruits and vegetables.
“My son is a hero. He served in the police, he has the passion to defend people.”
“When he saw people lying on the ground and the blood, quickly his conscience pushed him to attack one of the terrorists and take away his weapon,” Mohamed Fateh said.
Jozay Alkanji, Ahmed’s cousin, said he had had initial surgery and may need more.
AHMED PICTURED IN HOSPITAL
Tributes have poured in from leaders both abroad and at home.
Chris Minns, the premier of New South Wales, where Sydney is located, said in a social media post he visited Ahmed at St. George Hospital and conveyed the gratitude of people across the state.
“Ahmed is a real-life hero,” his post said. “Thank you, Ahmed.” A photo showed Minns at his bedside, and Ahmed propped on pillows with his left arm in a cast.
US President Donald Trump called Ahmed “a very, very brave person” who saved many lives.
A GoFundMe campaign set up for Ahmed has raised more than A$1.1 million within one day. Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman was the largest donor, contributing A$99,999 and sharing the fundraiser on his X account.
SUPPORTERS THANK AHMED FOR SAVING LIVES
Outside St. George Hospital, strangers came to show their support.
Misha and Veronica Pochuev left flowers for Ahmed with their seven-year-old daughter, Miroslava.
“My husband is Russian, my father is Jewish, my grandpa is Muslim. This is not only about Bondi, this is about every person,” Veronica said.
Yomna Touni, 43, stayed at the hospital for hours to offer assistance on behalf of a Muslim-run charity also raising funds for Ahmed.
“The intention is to raise as much money as possible for his speedy recovery,” she said. ($1 = 1.5047 Australian dollars) (Writing by Praveen Menon; Editing by Michael Perry, Saad Sayeed, Alexandra Hudson)
