Berlin: Man, 60, beaten after being asked if he is Jewish
An unknown man allegedly made antisemitic remarks to a Jewish man on a park bench in Schöneberg and punched him to the ground. The suspect fled; state security police are investigating.
Symbolic image · Photo: Lear 21 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
A 60-year-old man was attacked in Berlin's Schöneberg district on Saturday evening in what police believe was an antisemitic assault. Police said he was sitting on a park bench with an acquaintance at around 8 p.m. when a stranger offered him a beer and asked whether he was Jewish. When he said yes, an argument broke out and the stranger allegedly made antisemitic remarks.
The suspect allegedly splashed him with beer and threw a full can at him, which missed. When the man tried to leave, the suspect allegedly punched him to the ground and kept hitting him. According to police, the victim suffered facial bruises and a cut; he initially declined medical treatment.
A witness called police, and the suspect fled. The state security division of the Berlin State Criminal Police Office is investigating dangerous bodily harm with an antisemitic motive.