On April 11, 1945, one of the most infamous Nazi camps was liberated. Buchenwald concentration camp became a symbol of the industrialized evil that sought to annihilate the Jewish people and crush the human spirit.
Now, on that same date, left-wing activists plan to stage a protest there—because they believe the memorial is not “anti-Israel” enough.
Organized under the banner “Keffiyehs in Buchenwald,” the demonstration demands the right to wear the keffiyeh at the site. The scarf, widely associated with the Palestinian cause and often seen at pro-Hamas rallies across Europe, has become a political symbol in the current war climate.
Last year, a German court ruled that the memorial has the right to refuse entry to those wearing the keffiyeh in certain contexts. Memorial director Jens-Christian Wagner made clear the issue is not the garment itself, but when it is used alongside other symbols “to relativise Nazi crimes.” In other words: the site will not allow Holocaust remembrance to be hijacked for contemporary political messaging that distorts history.
