At first glance, Buchenwald Memorial’s latest booklet reads like a routine guide to identifying extremist symbols, an attempt to shield the memory of Nazi atrocities from being misused.

But as you flip the pages, a contradiction emerges that has come to define the German sense of fairness. Nestled among unmistakably hateful signs like swastikas, SS runes and neo-Nazi logos lies a very different list: a watermelon, a red triangle, a key, the word “genocide”, and even a slogan like “Ceasefire Now”.

These, the memorial says, may be signs of anti-Semitism or anti-Israel sentiment.

The 57-page guide, titled “Problematic brands, codes, symbols and signs of right-wing extremist and anti-Semitic groups” and published on Monday, is meant for staff at memorials and museums to spot far-right extremism. It remains unclear what the memorial staff would do if they come across unwelcomed symbols.

Buchenwald Memorial is one of Germany’s most important Holocaust remembrance institutions, which is built on the grounds of former Nazi concentration camps, and is funded by a federal ministry.

Its inclusion of symbols tied to Palestinian identity, particularly since the start of the war in Gaza in 2023, has drawn concern from civil rights advocates, academics and even European diplomats.

Ori Goldberg, an Israeli scholar of religion and politics, expresses deep concern over what he calls the “cheapening” of anti-Semitism in current discourse.

“It’s shameful that anti-Semitism is being reduced to a tool for defending Israeli policy. Symbols like ‘Ceasefire Now’ or even ‘From the river to the sea’ are being framed as hate speech, not because they target Jews, but because they challenge the Israeli state. That’s a misuse of history,” Goldberg tells TRT World.

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