German professor who claimed Jewish people “learned evil” from the Nazis acquitted

A microbiology professor in Germany was acquitted after being charged with inciting hatred in relation to comments that he made equating Israel to Nazi Germany.

Sucharit Bhakdi, 74, is a former head of the Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz and is a member of the fringe political party ‘die Basis’.

In a campaign video, he stated: “The people who fled from this land where the arch evil was, and have found their land, have turned their own land into something even worse than [Nazi] Germany was. That is the bad thing about the Jews – they learn well.

“There are no people who learn better than they do. But they have learned evil now – and put it into practice. That’s why Israel is now living hell.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.