Germany claims to support democracy and human rights – so why is it defunding antimilitaristic voices in Israel and Palestine? After the German government cut funding for New Profile, an activist from the group exposes the real motivations behind the decision, the deep militarization of Israeli society, and the dangerous rise of fascism in both countries. In this candid interview, Or dismantles Germany’s weaponized guilt, examines what is behind Israel’s claim of having the “most vegan-friendly military,” and issues an urgent call to the radical left for true solidarity beyond borders.
etos.media: The German government recently cut funding for your anti-militaristic organization, New Profile. Do you suspect a political motivation behind this decision?
Or, spokesperson, New Profile: The German government made this decision in June already, following significant political shifts in Germany and amid the genocide in Gaza. Initially, Germany defunded six Palestinian organizations. I want to emphasize their names because many German newspapers failed to do so, which I find both disrespectful and misleading:
- Al-Haq
- Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
- Bisan Center for Research and Development
- Defense for Children International-Palestine
- The Union of Agricultural Work Committees
- The Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees
After defunding these organizations, the German government faced pushback from groups in Palestine and Israel trying to prevent further defunding. Eventually, Germany made the additional decision to cut funding to specific Israeli organizations as well. The decision to defund us is part of an effort to erase the left and silence those who are fighting fascism, the occupation, and for human rights.
A part of this move is rooted in Germany’s concept of Staatsräson, which claims that Germany’s right to exist is tied to that of Israel. But this is a distortion – Germany isn’t genuinely concerned about Jewish people, Israelis, and certainly not Palestinians. What they care about is their decades-long arms sales with Israel and their political standing on the global stage. They are happy that Jews are in Israel, and anyone who is not the “right kind” of Jew will be accused of being antisemitic or possibly a self-hating Jew. Germany is shifting further to the right, with the AfD doubling its results in last Sunday’s elections and the CDU set to take over the chancellorship soon.
etos.media: The situation with New Profile is particularly ironic.
Or: Exactly. According to German law – even before the compulsory conscription freeze in 2011 – everyone had the right to make a moral decision about military service and opt for civil service instead. But in Israel, this right doesn’t exist. Our work is to escort people to exemption, supporting their basic right to choose. The BMZ’s (Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, J.R.) claim that we are doing something illegal in Israel is absurd. We are a registered organization – if we were breaking the law, we wouldn’t be able to be registered. The idea that helping people exercise a basic human right undermines Israel’s existence is deeply flawed. So, yes, I think it is politically.
And it is also sick and deeply condescending. The German government implies that Germans have the moral capacity to decide whether to serve in the army, but Israelis do not. When I first heard this arrogant argument, it struck me as a belief that Germans are more intelligent, and more capable of making ethical decisions, while Israelis must be coerced into military service.
etos.media: You already mentioned some aspects of your work, but for readers unfamiliar with New Profile, could you outline your main activities?
Or: We do feminist anti-militaristic work across several projects. One major area is education, media, and outreach. We analyze how militarization infiltrates nearly every aspect of Israeli society – how it shapes behaviour and indoctrinates people into a military mindset. Another key project is DIMSE, a database tracking Israeli military and war technology exports. Many activists focus on arms sales from Germany or the U.S. to Israel, but it is a two-way street. Our database provides crucial insight into Israel’s role in global arms deals.
We also run a consulting network supporting individuals who refuse to serve in the military. Whether someone objects due to genocide, the occupation, economic hardship, illness, or because they are queer, we assist them. And all those reasons are political to us. New Profile helps more than a thousand people each year, and demand has only increased since the genocide began.
etos.media: How will the loss of German funding affect your future work?
Or: I want to highlight an issue within European activism: the expectation that activism should be unpaid labor, done in one’s free time. This perspective overlooks the fact that unpaid activism is only accessible to the privileged – those with financial support from family, government benefits, or cheap or free housing. But that’s not the situation in many other countries in the world. New Profile has been one of the most inclusive organizations I’ve worked with. We work with people from diverse social and financial backgrounds, BIPOC, and other marginalized communities, and this is only possible because we insist on paying our staff, allowing them to dedicate themselves to the cause without struggling to survive. Often in activism, you fight tirelessly, yet see little change – or when change does come, it takes a long time. But the incredible work of the counselling network is different. We put in the effort, and people actually get out of the military. These small victories are so important. At a time when the Israeli army is cancelling exemptions due to a shortage of manpower, this is grassroots work.
Personally, I’m deeply concerned. I don’t have the financial privilege to continue working at New Profile without support. Many people will try to keep this work going, but the way it functions and who can participate will be affected. The work won’t disappear, but I won’t be able to contribute as much as I have. While I have a strong critique of German foundations and their neoliberal colonial approach – funding groups worldwide while dictating how their work should be done – I acknowledge that German funding was crucial in our case. Over 50 per cent of our budget came from the German government. Losing that overnight is devastating and shocking.
etos.media: New Profile aims to “reduce the military’s influence on Israeli civil society.” I’ve lived in Israel for a while, so I have at least a slight idea of what you’re talking about. How would you describe the influence and visibility of the military in everyday life to someone who has never been to Israel?
Or: Militarization is everywhere and in everything. It’s in the arts, radio, commercials, TV shows, music – every aspect of daily life. From kindergarten, children are introduced to the army. Schools commemorate holidays and teach history through a militarized lens, constantly reinforcing the idea that Jewish people are under threat and must rely on the military for survival. Historically, Jewish communities have faced persecution and survived multiple attempts of erasure, but the leap from that reality to the belief that an army is the only answer is a dangerous and illogical jump. This belief system is central to Israeli militarization: the only response to antisemitism and danger is weapons and revenge.
etos.media: I was shocked by the omnipresence of soldiers. You see them everywhere, casually carrying their rifles in the bus seat next to you.
Or: Yes, weapons and guns are everywhere. It’s deeply normalized. Did you see all the photos of people now getting married with rifles?
etos.media: Yes, that’s very disturbing.
Or: It is sick, really.
etos.media: You argue that this deeply-rooted militarization “makes society more violent, sexist, and racist”. I totally agree with that. Besides, one could argue that it is also a precondition for the dehumanization of Palestinians, as we see in the genocide in Gaza. Would you agree?
Or: Absolutely. Militarization is built on the idea of us vs. them. In Israel, “them” means Palestinians – or, more vaguely, “Arabs,” erasing Palestinian identity altogether. There’s also an effort to erase the fact that there are Jewish people that are Arabs. Dehumanization is central to the process. And I don’t know if this is too delicate for a German audience but Palestinians in Gaza are frequently compared to Nazis. Claiming they are the “new Nazis” is a part of their dehumanization.
Growing up in the Israeli education system, a big part of my radicalization process was also connected to understanding that Nazis were human beings. Dehumanizing them doesn’t help us understand how atrocities happen. Not aliens, but humans are capable of all those horrific things, and stripping them of their humanity removes both their responsibility and their capacity for change. If you grow up believing that violence and revenge are the only solutions, you won’t seek alternatives. Just look at Israeli news. When Iran launched missiles, the immediate response was: “We will find our way to retaliate. The army is already planning revenge.” Is that supposed to make people feel safe? A real solution would be preventing these attacks in the first place – by not attacking or occupying. But the core belief is: violence is the only answer.
Beyond that, the Israeli military markets itself as the most feminist, LGBTQ-friendly force in the world, and also the most inclusive in terms of ethnicities. But it’s all a lie. The military is built on racism, sexism, and discrimination. Many women are harassed and abused, queer soldiers face mistreatment, but the army shamefully exploits these identities for PR. Even veganism – I’m vegan, and I believe that it is the right thing to do – but the army boasts about being the “most vegan-friendly military.” You can eat vegan food while committing genocide. The military pushes the propaganda: “Palestinians kill gay people. Palestinians oppress women.” And whether it happens or not, in the end, the army aims to portray us as superior and Palestinians as animals and barbarians who only understand violence. That’s why, in their logic, Israel must occupy and control them – to prevent another Holocaust. Around the world, people kill LGBTQI+ individuals and oppress women; neither Israelis nor Palestinians are saints.
etos.media: German liberals love that the IDF is arguably so diverse. They love posting photos of female soldiers of Ethiopian origin.
Or: I know. They also fall for the idea that drafting women makes the army feminist. “Look how progressive they are! How beautiful.” I don’t want equality in killing.
etos.media: Over the past 60 or 70 years, Israeli politics has shifted increasingly to the right, a trend that has escalated dramatically in recent years, particularly under the current government. How have these developments – especially the growing influence of far-right figures and outspoken fascists like Smotrich, Goldknopf, and formerly Ben-Gvir – impacted your work as a leftist, anti-militarist movement?
Or: There has certainly been a shift, but Israel was never really “left.” The situation is worsening, and there is a rise in fascist right-wing forces that have affected not only New Profile but the entire left in Israel – let alone the radical left. It has become increasingly difficult to take any action. When I was younger, New Profile could sometimes give lectures in schools or speak in front of teachers. Today, that is no longer even remotely possible. Just recently, I read about a school cancelling a visit from a poet and writer simply because she spoke out against the war – that was considered too extreme. This is felt in everything we do. Demonstrating has become more dangerous due to growing violence and the fact that Ben-Gvir is distributing weapons as widely as possible. In February 2023 – just a few months into the genocide – he announced a goal of issuing 10,000 new gun licenses per month.
etos.media: Yes, I remember. That was a five-fold increase of the actual numbers.
Or: This means not only are there more weapons in the public sphere, but as a leftist, you’re afraid to even be on the street, let alone hold a sign against the genocide. Regular civilians now have guns and are eager to use them. Many are also traumatized and experience PTSD episodes, and they have guns, just imagine. Beyond that, there’s a culture of snitching – people don’t just disagree with you, they actively try to get you in trouble. They call the police and label you a traitor. They contact your workplace to get you fired. They pressure venues into cancelling events that dare to present a different perspective. This trend has accelerated since October 2023 but has been growing for years, and the combination of snitching and escalating violence against leftists has reached terrifying levels. It will never be comparable to what is happening to Palestinians in 67 or 48 territories [“48” meaning the internationally recognized territory of Israel proper and “67” the occupied Palestinian territories, J.R.], the control on them and on their rights to protest, has always met a much more threatening and violent reaction from Israeli forces. Besides the daily violent acts of settlers towards them, systematic racism is ingrained in Israeli law.
This crackdown is also reflected in government policy – new laws, increased surveillance, restrictions on speech and action. Specifically in New Profile’s work, we see harsher punishments for those who refuse military service. Jail sentences for deserters are getting longer, deliberately instilling fear to deter others from following the same path. Even minor cases are met with severe punishment. And of course, those tactics of intimidation are not only happening in Israel. I know venues in Germany are being shut down for hosting pro-Palestinian events or simply expressing their opinion.
etos.media: Just a few months ago in Berlin, two state-funded institutions that supported migrant women and girls were shut down. These were safe spaces for girls and women of colour, and the authorities shut them down simply because the staff spoke out for Palestine. Merry Christmas! And all of this is done in the name of fighting anti-Semitism.
Or: I also heard they shut down a venue because it hosted the 20-year celebration of the German branch of Jewish Voice for Peace.
etos.media: Exactly. That venue, Oyoun, is a migrant, leftist, feminist space. They hosted that event and were defunded as a result. The person responsible, Senator for Culture and Social Cohesion Joe Chialo of the centre-right CDU, claimed Oyoun was spreading “hidden antisemitism” – an accusation straight out of the autocrat’s playbook. How do you object to something that is even impossible to detect? But this is the reality in Germany.
Or: And the height of German audacity is arresting Jewish Israelis under the claim that they are antisemitic.
etos.media: Exactly. Let’s briefly return to the government’s decision. At a press conference, a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock stated that for project applications, they always assess the “außenpolitische Unbedenklichkeit”, which roughly translates to “foreign policy clearance.” In other words, they evaluate whether a group’s stance is “unobjectionable” or “inoffensive” to the German government’s foreign policy interests. Apparently, New Profile failed that test. What’s your response to this, especially given Germany’s supposedly strong democratic values, such as freedom of opinion?
Or: Many people see laws as instruments of justice and fairness. But historically, laws have also been tools of oppression. For me, assessing something based on legal alignment is a strange approach – especially for activists or leftists – because laws in both Germany and Israel often serve the interests of those in power rather than justice. And the hypocrisy is glaring. To that end, the definition of anti-Semitism is being manipulated. In Germany, the applied definition is any criticism of the state of Israel. Politicians and right-wing extremists weaponize the term to silence dissent. The fact that the German legal system considers slogans like “From the river to the sea” inherently anti-Semitic is absurd. Correct me if I’m wrong, since you are German, the first stanza of the German national anthem was removed, and it contained similar territorial language, from the river to the river, or something like that.
etos.media: Yes, exactly. “From the Maas to the Memel, from the Etsch to the Belt.” Four rivers, none of which are even in Germany, by the way. Classic.
[both laugh]
Or: So when they hear “From the river to the sea,” it immediately gets associated with Nazi days and is labelled antisemitic. The government reacts violently – beating demonstrators, putting people on trial for baseless reasons, and more. The standard they are holding is absolutely ridiculous – it’s like they’re trying to be more nationalist toward Israel than Israel itself. That’s why they clamp down so aggressively.
etos.media: We talked about the shift to the right in Israel, but Germany – the second-largest supporter of Israel after the U.S. – is also moving toward authoritarian policies, cracking down on Palestinian solidarity and chipping away at fundamental rights. Would you follow the presumption that these developments are highly interconnected?
Or: The short answer is yes, absolutely. The longer answer is more complex. From an Israeli perspective, every government – right or left – has been involved in the occupation, in violence against demonstrators, in oppressing Arab Jews, Ethiopian Jews, and other marginalized communities. Defining whether a government is right-wing or left-wing sometimes feels irrelevant. So-called left-wing governments in Israel have always been fascist. Israel has never been a democracy. We vote, yes, but that doesn’t make it a democracy.
And it’s not just Germany and Israel – it’s France, the U.S., Argentina. This trend is global. It didn’t start yesterday. What we’re missing as the radical left today is a broader historical and global perspective on what’s happening. Just as Germany’s colonial violence in Namibia set the stage for what they did in World War II, today’s unchecked atrocities will embolden future ones. For years, not enough activists have fought for the rights of people in Sudan, Eritrea, Myanmar, Western Sahara, Kurdistan. Horrific things are happening, and the West stays silent – or worse, collaborates by selling arms and legitimizing violent regimes. They sell weapons to their NATO partner Turkey so it can destroy Kurdish lives.
Fascism is growing, and it’s getting bolder. And we’re still not doing enough. Not just governments – activists, too. We fail to see the connections between struggles. When activists from Congo cry out, “See how we are connected to Palestine,” they’re widely dismissed as doing whataboutism. The same happens with Sudan, Myanmar, you name it. Even within pro-Palestinian circles, I’ve heard people deny the oppression of the Kurdish people just because Erdoğan claims to support Palestine. It’s absurd.
etos.media: Some people get confused when we denounce all forms of oppression without pitting one injustice against another.
Or: If we, as the radical left, don’t wake up and recognize these connections, things will only get worse. We must fight against all injustice, not rank oppressions against each other. Palestine is not the only place in the world where tens of thousands of people are murdered in a few months. Don’t wake up to atrocities just after they became a genocide.
etos.media: If you could deliver one message to Germany, what would it be?
Or: I understand what guilt does to people and I understand that German guilt is a part of the country’s politics. And as a therapist, I understand that guilt is real – it can shape an identity. But guilt is dangerous because it prevents responsibility. When you fall into a cycle of guilt, you become part of the problem. Instead of victimizing themselves within this cycle, Germany needs to take responsibility. Not just for the past, but for what’s happening now in Palestine and Israel. Otherwise, in 60 years, Germans will wake up again thinking: “Oh shit, we were, yet again, on the wrong side of history.” Germans need to understand that collaborating with fascists out of loyalty to Israel will ultimately backfire. The rights they are already stripping – from the Kurdish independence movement, now from Palestinian solidarity – will make it even easier to suppress other movements. So never, ever play into the hands of fascism just because you feel obligated to be loyal to something, always fight it.
Or is a long-time activist and member of the feminist, antimilitaristic Israeli movement New Profile.
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