A court in Frankfurt, Germany, has sentenced Marcel Lamer (28), a doctoral student at Frankfurt University, to approximately two weeks in prison for rushing onto the stage with an Israeli flag during a Roger Waters concert held in May 2023 in Frankfurt.

Lamer, a pro-Israel activist, was part of a group that attempted to get Waters' performance canceled due to the former Pink Floyd member's antisemitic statements and frequent anti-Israel elements in his shows.

The pro-Israel activist arrived with a group of protesters at the event, participated in a peaceful demonstration outside, and then entered the venue with the intention of documenting the performance. His plan was to gather evidence if Waters made statements or engaged in activities that violated German law, which could then be reported to the police.

According to Lamer, immediately upon entering the venue, he noticed a prominent stand run by a pro-Arab organization called "The Voice of Palestine," a group whose members' homes had been raided by German police due to illegal activities. The stand featured calls for "intifada" and maps of Israel labeled entirely as "Palestine."

When the show began, an announcement stated, "If you don't agree with Roger Waters' political views, you can leave the hall now and go to the local bar." This was met with enthusiastic responses from the audience. In reaction, the pro-Israel activists raised Israeli flags and began singing "Am Yisrael Chai" (The People of Israel Live). At this point, Lamer decided to climb onto the stage with an Israeli flag.

Despite the presence of 30 security guards around the stage, he managed to evade them and spent about 20 seconds on stage wrapped in an Israeli flag in front of an audience of 10,000 people and Waters himself. Shortly afterward, a security guard forcibly removed him and handed him over to the police.

The production company filed a complaint against Lamer, and after several months, he was fined 500 euros (approximately $141) which was supposed to be donated to an anti-Zionist organization. "I made it clear that there was no way I would donate money to them and that I preferred to go to court," Lamer said.

About three weeks ago, he appeared in court, and despite testimony that he had not assaulted anyone and that this was a legitimate protest action, the court judges decided to increase the punishment to two weeks in prison or a fine of 1,500 euros (about $423).

"In court, they compared me to a hooligan soccer fan who breaks into the field, even though there's no ideological motivation in such an intrusion," Lamer explained. "When I explained to the judge that I considered this a necessary protest and that I had no intention of paying money to an anti-Israel organization, he said I was acting out of honor that resembled 'honor killing' behavior. I was shocked by the comparison."

Lamer's refusal was supposed to send him to jail in recent days, but he has filed an appeal to a higher court, and in the coming months, the regional court in Germany will hear his case.

"This story is becoming too expensive for me, but this isn't about money – it's about principles," Lamer explained. "I am German, aware of my people's history, and when we say 'never again,' it means we must protest against hatred of Jews. I didn't use violence and didn't harm anyone. I simply protested against an artist with antisemitic views who spreads lies against Israel. It seems distorted to me that they threaten to throw me in jail because I learned from our history in Germany that we must not remain silent when there is incitement against Jews and against the State of Israel."

Lamer's pro-Israel activities have already led to incidents at Frankfurt University. He has been verbally and physically attacked, flyers have been distributed in his neighborhood labeling him "anti-Muslim" and "pro-Zionist," strangers have photographed him in the cafeteria, and he has suffered ongoing harassment. Eventually, to avoid disruption to his studies, he decided to relocate to another city.

"I will continue to support Israel and the Jewish people. I know who you are, and I stand with you in any situation," Lamer promised.

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The Biden administration is weighing in on the controversy over Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters, saying his recent performances in Germany were antisemitic.

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The State Department said Tuesday that Waters has "a long track record of using antisemitic tropes" and a concert he gave late last month in Germany "contained imagery that is deeply offensive to Jewish people and minimized the Holocaust."

The comments came in a written response to a question posed at Monday's State Department press briefing about whether the administration agreed with criticism of Rogers from the US special envoy to combat antisemitism, Deborah Lipstadt.

"Special Envoy Lipstadt's quote-tweet speaks for itself," the department said. "The concert in question, which took place in Berlin, contained imagery that is deeply offensive to Jewish people and minimized the Holocaust. The artist in question has a long track record of using antisemitic tropes to denigrate Jewish people."

In a May 24 tweet after the concert in Berlin, during which Waters appeared on stage in a costume reminiscent of Nazi-era Germany, Lipstadt denounced the musician by echoing comments from EU antisemitism envoy Katharina von Schnurbein, who is German.

"I wholeheartedly concur with @EUAntisemitism 's condemnation of Roger Waters and his despicable Holocaust distortion," Lipstadt wrote in reply to a tweet from von Schnurbein.

Von Schnurbein had taken issue with Waters' performance in Berlin as well as his previous comments related to Israel and the Holocaust.

"I am sick & disgusted by Roger Waters' obsession to belittle and trivialize the Shoah & the sarcastic way in which he delights in trampling on the victims, systematically murdered by the Nazis," von Schnurbein wrote. "In Germany. Enough is enough."

Shortly after the concert, police in Berlin said they had opened an investigation of Waters on suspicion of incitement over the costume he wore.

Images on social media showed Waters firing an imitation machine gun while dressed in a long black coat with a red armband. Police confirmed that the costume could constitute a glorification, justification or approval of Nazi rule and therefore a disturbance of the public peace.

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Protesters waved Israeli flags Sunday at the Roger Waters concert in Frankfurt. Footage that circulated on social media showed one of the demonstrators rush the stage, evading security, and reaching the upper deck.

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Ahead of the concert, several Jewish groups, politicians and an alliance of civil society groups gathered for a memorial ceremony and a protest rally against the event.

The Pink Floyd co-founder has been accused of antisemitism and drew ire for his support of the BDS movement, which calls for boycotts and sanctions against Israel.

Frankfurt authorities had initially tried to prevent the concert taking place, but Waters successfully challenged the move in a local court. The concert took place in the city's Festhalle, where in November 1938 more than 3,000 Jews were rounded up by the Nazis, beaten and abused, and later deported to concentration camps.

"Against this historical background, the concert should not have taken place under any circumstances," said Sacha Stawski, a member of the Frankfurt Jewish community and head of the group Honestly Concerned, that helped organize the protests.

"It's very frustrating" that the concert is going ahead as scheduled even though Frankfurt officials and many others tried to prevent it, Elio Adler, the head of the Jewish group WerteInitiative which supports the protest, told The Associated Press. "His words and imagery spread Jew-hatred and are part of a trend: to normalize Israel-hatred under the protection of freedom of speech or art."

Last week, police in Berlin said they had opened an investigation of Waters on suspicion of incitement over a costume he wore when he performed in the German capital earlier this month. Images on social media showed Waters firing an imitation machine gun while dressed in a long black coat with a red armband. Police confirmed that an investigation was opened over suspicions that the context of the costume could constitute a glorification, justification or approval of Nazi rule and therefore a disturbance of the public peace.

Waters rejected those accusations in a statement on Facebook and Instagram, saying that "the elements of my performance that have been questioned are quite clearly a statement in opposition to fascism, injustice, and bigotry in all its forms."

He claimed that "attempts to portray those elements as something else are disingenuous and politically motivated."

During Sunday's ceremony and protests, which took place in front of the Frankfurt concert venue before Waters' concert was set to begin, protesters read out loud the names of 600 Jews who were rounded up at the Festhalle on November 9, 1939, the so-called Kristallnacht – the "Night of Broken Glass" – when Nazis terrorized Jews throughout Germany and Austria.

The organizers also held a joint Jewish-Christian prayer for the victims of the Nazi terror in Frankfurt. The city's mayor as well as the head of the local Jewish community spoke at the protest.

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"Hatred of Jews is to be condemned everywhere in our city," Frankfurt Mayor Mike Josef said, according to German news agency dpa. "There is no reason to hate, insult and attack a person because of his religion."

Before the performance began, around 400 protesters handed out flyers to concertgoers and waved Israeli flags. Others held up banners with slogans such as "Israel, we stand with you" or "Roger Waters, wish you were not here" in reference to Pink Floyd's famous song "Wish You Were Were," dpa reported.

Protesters in Munich rallied against a concert by Waters earlier this month, after the city council said it had explored possibilities of banning the performance but concluded that it wasn't legally possible to cancel a contract with the organizer.

Last year, the Polish city of Krakow canceled gigs by Waters because of his sympathetic stance toward Russia in its war against Ukraine.

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Former Pink Floyd bassist and ardent anti-Israel activist Roger waters has called to suspend Israeli soccer teams from FIFA, the international soccer governing body, and UEFA, the Union of European Football Associations.

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The English musician announced the campaign in a post to Twitter, Sunday.

To Kick Off our Campaign to SUSPEND ISRAELI TEAMS from @FIFAcom and @UEFA, I would encourage all EPL players and all football fans to watch "THE OCCUPATION OF THE AMERICAN MIND".
Love
R.https://t.co/rPQw2j4j5X

— Roger Waters (@rogerwaters) April 11, 2021

Waters has a history of similar requests.

In March, he called legendary singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder to refuse to accept the Wolf Prize, because it is granted in Israel. He previously called on musicians like John Bon Jovi, Lana Del Rey, Robbie Williams, and Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke to not perform in Israel.

In 2019, the year Israel hosted the Eurovision contest, Waters and other European artists signed a letter calling for the song competition to be moved elsewhere, and called on Madonna, who was scheduled to perform at the opening ceremony, to cancel.

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Former Pink Floyd bassist and well-known BDS supporter Roger Waters is continuing his campaign and is calling on other musicians to join him. Most recently, he publicly requested that legendary singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder refuse to accept the Wolf Prize, because it is granted in Israel.

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Wonder was awarded the prestigious international award in February for "his tremendous contribution to music and society enriching the lives of entire generations of music lovers," according to a statement from President Reuven Rivlin's office.

In a video Waters posted on Twitter on Tuesday, he reminded Wonder that a few years earlier, he had canceled a concert for a group that raised money for the IDF and called on him to stand up against the "apartheid regime" again.

"I know you're not going to accept this Wolf Prize, and neither you should. This is an apartheid regime. This is Israel. You will be whitewashing them beyond all belief if you accept the Wolf Prize," Waters said in the video.

.@steviewonder, with respect, you turned down Haim Saban's IDF fundraiser in 2012. Please turn down Israel's @WolfPrize_ in 2021.

Love
R.https://t.co/VXS3pWP2X9 pic.twitter.com/KTeFk5ePck

— Roger Waters (@rogerwaters) March 9, 2021

Wonder was scheduled to perform at the Friends of the IDF concert in 2012 that was raising money for the Israeli army but decided to call it off due to petitions from pro-Palestinian groups and recommendations of the United Nations.

In his Twitter post, Waters praised Wonder for his decision back in 2012, for the money would have otherwise been used by the IDF to "go out and murder more innocent Palestinians with impunity."

Waters has a history of similar requests, having previously called on musicians like John Bon Jovi, Lana Del Rey, Robbie Williams, and Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke to not perform in Israel.

In 2019, the year Israel hosted the Eurovision contest, Waters and other European artists signed a letter calling for the song competition to be moved elsewhere, and called on Madonna, who was scheduled to perform at the opening ceremony, to cancel.

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