European cities are braced for violent clashes this weekend as people take to the streets to protest against Israeli military operations in Gaza.
Thousands of police are being deployed in cities across Europe with Berlin alone deploying 1,500 police officers in a response and authorities in Paris have sought to ban outright marches planned for this weekend.
The protests have triggered warnings that the spectre of anti-Semitism has returned to haunt Europe.
Protesters have attacked synagogues, smashed the windows of Jewish-owned business and torched others, in scenes disturbingly reminiscent of the 1938 Kristallnacht in France. The marchers have chanted “Jews to the gas chambers”, and Jewish people have been attacked on the streets of Berlin.
An 18-year-old Jewish man claimed on Friday he had been punched in the face in an unprovoked attack while wearing a skull cap in the centre of Berlin, in what would be the second such incident in less than a week. » | Justin Huggler, Berlin, and Josie Ensor | Saturday, July 26, 2014
