The German Federal Court of Justice must decide whether the controversial pro-Palestinian slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” should be considered a symbol of a terrorist organization.
A court in Berlin last week found a woman guilty of using a symbol of a terrorist organization after she posted the phrase on her publicly accessible Instagram profile, and imposed a fine of €1,300.
The 42-year-old Iranian national has now appealed to the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, a court spokeswoman said on Thursday.
Berlin Case chairman Susann Wettley said the slogan is a symbol of the Palestinian Islamist Hamas group, which the European Union classifies as a terrorist organization.
The slogan calls for a free Palestine stretching from the Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea, an area where the state of Israel is located.
Many activists say the phrase is a rallying cry for peace and equality for Palestinians. Others claim it is anti-Semitic and a call for the destruction of Israel.
German courts have so far assessed the slogan differently.
The ruling in Berlin marked the first time the slogan was assessed as a symbol of a terrorist organization, prosecutor Tim Kaufmann said.
Wettley said that especially after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 last year, the German public began to associate the slogan with the group.
She said the defendant had spread the phrase knowing that Hamas was classified as a terrorist organization, adding that the group had embraced the statement.
German law enforcement has tried to crack down on the use of the phrase.
In August, a court in Berlin fined a protester €600 ($630) for chanting the slogan at a pro-Palestinian rally there.
