German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Friday that immigrants from Muslim-majority countries must recognize Germany's historical responsibility for the Holocaust or leave the country, as he addressed concerns over antisemitism during a gathering of Jewish athletes in Berlin.
Speaking at a reception for participants in the Maccabiah, an international Jewish sporting event held every four years in Israel, Merz said Germany's responsibility for Nazi atrocities extended to everyone living in the country, including newcomers.
"This historical responsibility of our country applies just as much to those who come here to Germany from Islamic countries," Merz said.
"And anyone who fails to abide by this must leave our country," he added.
His remarks came after a basketball coach attending the event raised concerns about the safety of Jewish athletes, saying some feared being attacked in public while wearing red Maccabi training jackets displaying the Star of David.
Merz responded by recalling a landmark 1985 speech by former German President Richard von Weizsäcker, delivered to parliament on the 40th anniversary of the end of World War II.
In the address, von Weizsäcker distinguished between responsibility for the crimes committed under Nazi rule and the obligation of subsequent generations to confront their historical legacy.
"The young people are not responsible for what happened back then. But they are responsible for what becomes of it in history," von Weizsäcker said.
Merz described the statement as an enduring principle that should guide German society.
"And that applies to German society as a whole. And I would add, given the current circumstances: that also applies to immigrants who come to Germany," he said.
Merz's comments also come against a backdrop of growing hostility toward Muslims in Germany, where rights organizations have raised concerns about increasing discrimination, threats and violence targeting the community.
According to a report released in June by the Alliance Against Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate (CLAIM), Germany recorded 4,096 anti-Muslim incidents in 2025, up from 3,080 the previous year, an increase of approximately 33%.
