A Berlin high school was vandalized after it canceled its graduation ceremony amid fears of pro-Palestinian protests and potential riots during the event. The school's exterior walls were defaced with graffiti reading "You burn Gaza? We'll burn Berlin," alongside messages like "Students have the right to protest" and "Stop police violence."
Protesters then rolled a heavy cart laden with carpets to the entrance of the school's server room and set it on fire. The damage caused was estimated between a quarter to half a million euros.
Tiergarten Gymnasium's management was concerned that 50 out of 120 students in the graduating class intended to use the graduation for pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel and even antisemitic demonstrations.
Bringing in law enforcement
Fortunately, there was no damage to the building itself, but the police launched a criminal investigation into the vandalism and suspected arson. The school, located on the border between more homogeneous neighborhoods of Berlin and a migrant neighborhood, decided to close its gates until further notice.
This was not the only violent incident carried out by pro-Palestinians against representatives and academic institutions in Berlin over the past week. After several weeks in which participants in anti-Israel protests explicitly threatened Günter Ziegler, President of the Free University of Berlin, in graffiti on university walls - they managed to carry out their threat over the weekend.
At a meeting in Ziegler's office with the student union to discuss the protests across the campus, a protester who was in attendance, poured water on Ziegler's head and shouted at him, "Wake up from your genocide." While the president wiped his face, the activist taunted, "It's not tear gas, stop crying." Just minutes after the delegation was kicked out of his office, the "Students for Palestine at the Free University" organization posted a video of the incident on their Instagram account.
The threats to Ziegler's life began in May after he ordered the police to disperse the pro-Palestinian protest encampment, claiming he could no longer ensure the safety of Jewish students on campus. Last month, graffiti was sprayed at another branch of the university in Berlin, featuring an inverted red triangle (a symbol for Hamas targets) and the text "Ziegler will pay."