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Flensburg Prosecutors Open Hate-Incitem​ent Probe Over Shop’s “Jews Banned” Sign

The case underscores Germany’s zero‑tolerance approach to exclusionary antisemitic messaging rooted in historical experience.

Overview

  • The window notice stated “Juden haben hier Hausverbot” with a line denying antisemitism, and was posted by 60‑year‑old shop owner Hans‑Velten Reisch at his secondhand and gothic goods store.
  • The Flensburg public prosecutor opened an investigation on suspicion of Volksverhetzung, citing potential disturbance of public peace and the demeaning of Jews, and seized the sign as evidence.
  • Police visited the premises after multiple complaints and ordered the sign removed on Wednesday evening for danger prevention.
  • Reisch links his action to anger over events in Gaza and rejects antisemitism allegations, later describing the note as a private statement he would not repeat in that form.
  • Federal and state officials, including antisemitism commissioner Felix Klein, condemned the act, and the storefront was later defaced with “Nazis raus” graffiti and stickers.