In its clampdown on Islamic extremists in Germany, the country’s interior ministry has targeted several Islamic centres, a mosque, and their affiliated online media channels.
Unfortunately, in doing so, it made an embarrassing error.
Due to a typo, the decree mistakenly named the luxury brand CHANEL’s YouTube channel instead of the intended Islamist channel connected to the Islamic Centre in Berlin.
On July 24, Germany closed one of its largest and oldest mosques and banned the nationwide Shia Muslim organisation that operates it, citing concerns over religious extremism.
But, in the ministry’s announcement, a typo has caused some red faces.
The prohibition order included websites connected to the Islamist organisation, but instead of the YouTube link to the Islamic Centre of Berlin, the interior ministry referred to the YouTube link of CHANEL.
The brand’s channel was not affected but the ministry’s mistake was only fixed hours later in an official correction.
Kleiner Fail: Das BMI hat laut seiner Verfügung nicht den Youtube-Channel des „Islamischen Zentrum Berlin e.V.“ verboten, sondern den von @CHANEL: https://t.co/v4tlGKFTC1 pic.twitter.com/VSSG4epow8
— Lennart Pfahler (@LennartPfahler) July 24, 2024
The clampdown was accompanied by German authorities conducting a major operation involving dozens of police raiding Hamburg’s Blue Mosque and 53 other properties across the country, including mosques in Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich, which were also closed.
According to the interior ministry, the organisations preached “totalitarian rule, aggressive antisemitism and support for the terror group Hezbollah”.
“The [Islamic Centre of Hamburg] propagates an Islamist, totalitarian ideology in Germany,” said interior minister Nancy Faeser.
“This Islamist ideology is directed against human dignity, against women’s rights, against an independent judiciary and against our democratic State.”
BREAKING 🚨
Germany has banned the Islamic Center Hamburg (IZH) and closed down four mosques after a massive raid this morning.
German authorities regard the center as extremist and a representative of the Islamic regime and Hezbollah in Germany.
Via DPA pic.twitter.com/h629KncL3p
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) July 24, 2024
