The Jüdische Allgemeine, a Jewish newspaper published in Germany, revealed earlier this week that the president of the Technical University of Berlin, Professor Geraldine Rauch, had liked tweets containing antisemitic and anti-Israel content.
Just two weeks ago, following intense pro-Palestinian protests with harsh anti-Israel chants accusing Israel of genocide and apartheid on her campus, and rhythmic chants of "Fu*k you, Israel," Rauch had expressed a firm stance against any form of Jew-hatred and incitement against Israel.
"We will not tolerate any kind of antisemitism, and we will stand by our Jewish students, as well as the Palestinian students who are losing family members daily," Rauch stated.
However, a brief investigation by a journalist from the newspaper revealed that Rauch had liked a tweet showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a swastika on his chest, depicted by Turkish protesters. Rauch also liked posts on social media accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. In response to the backlash, Rauch quickly deleted her X social media account, leading many to accuse her of trying to cover up evidence (Jüdische Allgemeine published screenshots of the tweets Rauch had liked).
On Wednesday, Rauch apologized for the likes. "I liked content on X that referred to the situation in Gaza and Rafah, which included antisemitic content or authors," she wrote. "I want to distance myself from the content clearly and the authors of those tweets."
This apology seemed absurd to many, given that Rauch claimed she did not notice the illustration of Netanyahu with a swastika on his chest and only liked the tweet because it called for a cease-fire. Worse yet, it turns out that the president of the Technical University of Berlin frequently browsed X accounts with clear pro-Russian content, and repeatedly expressed support for Hamas.
Uffa Jensen, the antisemitism officer at the Technical University, appointed by Rauch against the wishes of the Central Council of Jews in Berlin, to which Jüdische Allgemeine belongs, said he had an intensive conversation with the university president. They agreed that it was a mistake and that the image of Netanyahu was aggressive and hateful antisemitism.
However, Jensen argued that "from a scientific perspective, tweets claiming that Israel commits genocide or war crimes are not 100% antisemitic, especially considering that such accusations are currently being debated in international courts." Jensen's views have caused conflicts between him and the Central Council of Jews in Berlin, as he is seen as opposing the redefinition of antisemitism to include extreme criticism of Israel.