Daniel Gurfinkel, an Israeli musician who lives in Berlin, was the subject of a violent assault earlier this week by pro-Palestinian BDS activists who were protesting the Eurovision song competition being held in Israel.
Gurfinkel lives in a neighborhood that is also home to a large population of Arab immigrants. On the night of the attack, he walked by a local BDS protest, where demonstrators were calling for a boycott of Eurovision.
When he heard the anti-Israel cries, Gurfinkel tried to respond in defense of his native country, but the protesters attacked him.
"As soon as I tried to say a word defending Israel, they started attacking me," Gurfinkel said.
A video showing the incident shows Gurfinkel being beaten by the protesters, although two of them did try to defend him from the assault.
"I received blows to the head, and police who were passing by were indifferent," he added.
Gurfinkel said that it took several minutes for the police officers to intervene.
"I've been living in Berlin for four years, and I never thought something like this would happen to me. I'll keep defending my country," he said.
