Two Turkish mosques in Hannover were vandalized overnight with graffiti featuring Israeli military-related inscriptions.
Unidentified individuals spray-painted IDF – an acronym for Israel's military – on the walls of mosques run by Turkish-Muslim organizations IGMG and DITIB, officials said Wednesday.
The incident occurred amid growing outrage among Germany's Muslim population over IDF’s brutal military campaign in Gaza, which killed tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians.
Ibrahim Kidik, chairman of the Ayasofya Mosque Association, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that community members were shocked when they discovered the graffiti in the morning.
"The perpetrators remain unknown, and we hope the police investigation will reveal whether this was a provocation or had some other motive," Kidik said. "We strongly condemn these incidents and demand that the case be resolved as quickly as possible."
The Turkish consulate general in Hannover contacted German authorities, calling for swift completion of the investigation, identification of the perpetrators, and increased security measures for Turkish mosques and community organizations, according to diplomatic sources.
With a population of over 84 million people, Germany has the second-largest Muslim population in Western Europe after France. Among the country’s nearly 5.5 million Muslims, 3.5 million are of Turkish origin.
Anti-Muslim racism and hate attacks surged in recent years, amid growing far-right propaganda by right-wing extremist groups. German police recorded 930 Islamophobic crimes in the first nine months of this year. Of those, 31 were directed at mosques.
The crimes include assault, insult, incitement to hatred, property damage and use of symbols of unconstitutional organizations. The incidents resulted in injuries to 37 people, with one person seriously wounded.
