For a man that so many of his fans still claim to be intimidated by, Michael Gira in the flesh sure comes across as… somewhat of a goofball he expands on his collaborator Kristof Hahn “you should see him after the show!” Moments later he puts a finger on his backside: “TSSSSSSSS!” Possibly his good mood is sparked by the fact that the show in Berlin marks the finale of his widely celebrated tour with Hahn – or because the two musicians are at this point so in tune their dynamic interplay resembles telepathic communication Opening with a great performance by soloist Joanna Gemma Auguri whose tender accordion led songs create an intimate atmosphere that perfectly captures the charms of Neukölln’s Heimathafen the evening continues with Hahn performing a lengthy improvisation His lap-steel guitar conjures ever shifting textures before diving into wild psychedelia – moving from ambient tapestries that would fit on Brian Eno’s On Land to No-Wave adjacent noise Hahn is often held up as one of Gira’s most valuable soldiers and his performance showcases a generational mastery that is mind blowing the two smiling at each other over the alteration between silence and cacophony High art can be fun without reeking of irony the two dive into a selection of new songs off the upcoming SWANS album Hahn’s lap-steel creates powerful waves of cosmic harmonies while Gira’s repetitive guitar strumming adds a lasting rhythm over which his voice rises rich in expression – mocking while “I Am a Tower” allows Gira to loudly exclaim the arrogance of a megalomaniac protagonist (who may or may not be Donald Trump where the song usually enters a blistering It’s one of the many goosebump moments of this evening As Gira announces to the crowd: these are protest songs But they also take the form of lyrical sound-narratives that function beyond the surreal imagery of their text (“I am a kitten!” remains one of Gira’s most oddly compelling choices) most of the audience sways in a trance-like bliss Hahn and Gira manage to distill something transcendental and everyone in the room seems caught within it at one point there’s a brief chat between them seemingly centred on a specific musical dialogue of the preceding song seem to be aware that they touched upon something magical swaying as if the rhythm of his guitar is fully removed from the movement of his hands The second half of the set consists of older material – something SWANS won’t dare touch in their shows as Gira has repeatedly explained his dislike for nostalgia It’s Real” (the most recent tune of the selection) collects shades of a tuneful Folk track radiating an aura of optimism and confidence as Hahn takes a break for “God Damn the Sun” which Gira plays especially slow and weighty briefly chuckling as a teenage fan is headbanging heavily in the first row gesturing jokingly at him to slow it down after the first verse As mentioned earlier: for a man that has often been described as “intimidating” Gira expresses an incredible warmth this night The only moment of sinister transgression comes when the dup play “You Will Pay” an unrecorded track that has become a staple of Gira’s solo sets It is here where Gira’s eyes scan the audience and finally find a lone smart-phone recording these moments are a recurring occurrence during Gira’s performances – and for those worried the audience member quickly removed his phone and had a pleasant conversation with Gira after the set (a blessing that Reddit can now provide the closure which The song ultimately benefits from the short moment adding even more gravitas to Gira’s expression of confrontational anger and defiance “You Will Pay” has not been put on tape because it demands a physical presence that turns paralysed in recording Before Gira closes out the evening with a few lines of well spoken German (oh!) the set concludes with an especially moving highlight: “Failure” the song is driven by Gira’s pained howls optimistic or gentle tones and nuances dominated the night iconic performance is an especially haunting coda with Gira finally screaming into the microphone “Failure” quite possibly never sounded as poignant – or I have remarked before, in my review of The Beggar that Gira is the ultimate contradiction – a man who can passionate and gifted with an aura of deep every musical dialogue with the exceptional Hahn every emotional movement seems in tune with a deep If you are awarded with a chance of seeing Gira and Hahn play – you must take it the two might just have performed one of the best nights in their artistic journey A filmmaker, visual artist and cultural critic, whose writing encompasses punk, vaporwave, occultism and the 90s. He runs the music-centric youtube channel YOU ARE WRONG. © Stefan MuellerThe former department store and parking garage is uniquely suited for extraordinary events MREI places great emphasis on close collaboration with local stakeholders having established strong connections with district-based groups and facilitated temporary uses such as during the „48h Neukölln" art festival The building's distinctive appeal is reflected in its new tenant mix It now houses the CODE University of Applied Sciences the world's leading music streaming platform; Rough Trade a legendary music store from London; the startup accelerator Delta which offer flexible office spaces for freelancers and small businesses You'll now receive updates based on what you follow Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors If you have done all of this and still can't find the email Jasmine Laws is a US News Reporter at Newsweek based in London Her focus is reporting on health insurance Jasmine joined Newsweek in 2024 from News UK and had previously written for the Metro The Human Perspective magazine and The Express She has previously extensively covered stories within the U.K She was one of the nominees for Best News Piece at the U.K's Anti-Slavery Day 2023 Awards in Parliament She is a graduate of Durham University and completed her NCTJ at News Associates You can get in touch with Jasmine by emailing jasmine.laws@newsweek.com either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content A soccer team in Germany was reportedly threatened with knives and sticks a few days after Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam were attacked have both been described as antisemitic attacks According to reports in the local German news outlet Tagesspiegel there were alleged attacks on the Jewish under-17 soccer players of the Makkabi Berlin football team It was reported that the incident occurred at the grounds of the soccer team DJK Schwarz-Weiß Neukölln following a match between the two teams it was also alleged that an unknown group insulted the Makkabi players The incident is now reportedly being investigated by state security and it was reported on Sunday that the police were looking into concerns of a breach of the peace incitement to hatred and insult ex officio Tagesspiegel also wrote that the German Press Agency reported the Berlin Makkabi club was protected by the police at the weekend during its games Newsweek has contacted the Berlin police and the Makkabi Berlin football team via email for comment on the alleged attacks reportedly told the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper that witnesses confirmed "threats undoubtedly took place," the Jerusalem Post reported who appears to be the father of one of the Berlin players wrote that his 13-year-old son had been caught up in the incident while playing for the Makkabi team the atmosphere during the game became increasingly aggressive and hostile Our children were insulted and even spat on several times - and this without the referee intervening or even paying any attention," he wrote Mein 13-jähriger Sohn hatte gestern mit seinen Freunden von @makkabifussball Berlin ein Fußballspiel in Neukölln. Leider wurde die Atmosphäre während des Spiels zunehmend aggressiv und feindselig. Unsere Kinder wurden mehrfach beleidigt und sogar bespuckt – und das, ohne dass… pic.twitter.com/2j50fXeXkP the situation escalated further: children and adults were followed and loudly insulted My son came home deeply shaken and only found out from his friends via WhatsApp that the situation had become even more threatening later." The father wrote that the Berlin police were "apparently on site after all I have not read anything about this incident in the media so far." On Thursday night, Israeli soccer fans were targeted at a Europa League game in the Netherlands between the Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam Israeli authorities initially responded to the incident on X, formerly Twitter "the IDF immediately prepared to send out a rescue mission in coordination with the Dutch government," but the rescue plans were later canceled Do you have a story Newsweek should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact LiveNews@newsweek.com Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground Newsweek is committed to journalism that's factual and fair Hold us accountable and submit your rating of this article on the meter. Newsletters in your inbox See all Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker what was once abandoned has been recycled into something distinctive Here is a list of unmissable details in the Neukölln narrative Beth Watt / Unsplash View Berlin Tours What would any Berlin guide list be without an art gallery? Cell63 is the brainchild of the Italian-born artist This creative venue doesn’t cater to just one type of art from illustrators to mixed media sculptors various workshops and a seamless transition between workspace to showcase space this gallery is a unique and necessary gem of the Berlin art gallery scene Cell63 is a platform for international artists to come The one-size-fits-all pedagogy just doesn’t cut it in Berlin. But Berlin has adopted the ‘if it can be imagined it can be created’ mentality, which gave birth to numerous stores that are diverse in nature. Holze Kohlen Koks remains category-less part furniture store takes a keen interest in aesthetics of the eye and pleasure of the mind The owner of the studio is a furniture designer and interior architect who takes pride in his work His background of exquisite craftsmanship bleeds over into this concept space It has rotating art shows and sells unique furniture that caters to being more than just an inanimate object in the negative space This is a place to come and visually drink in some creative pieces or take some home perhaps in the form of an idiosyncratic lamp Tempelhof Airport was a paramount airport in the pre-World War II era in Berlin Part of the closed airport neighbors the western border of this newly trendy borough the genius city of Berlin reclaimed this massive space The airport itself is used for various events like the Berlin music festival This colossal 386 acre stretch of boundless area invites expats natives and tourists alike to come barbecue stretch out in the sun or for the more active The magnitude of this open space champions a kind of freedom that encourages park-goers to occupy this park as they wish Sign up to our newsletter to save up to $800 on our unique trips See privacy policy © Peter Delius / Alamy Stock Photo There are some bars that begged to be instagrammed because of their sweeping views and their effortlessly cool arrangement of artisanal décor. There are some bars whose names stay on the tip of the tongue, not because they are particularly easy to say, but because they get pocketed as go-to destinations. Klunkerkranich is a watering-hole heaven think any quintessential New York summer rooftop party The bar is on the inside with a dance floor and carries some cheap drinks ranging from beers to the hard stuff The outside is a hodgepodge of what looks like an abandoned bohemian garden party mixed with recycled hipster chic This place is perfect for starting off the night or enjoying a relaxed drink with a view while taking in the sunset but those who dare to brave the cold won’t be utterly disappointed with the exquisite views Klunkerkranich is an ideal inner-city getaway where it’s still possible to get drunk See & Do The Best Weekend Trips From Heidelberg Art 10 Masterpieces You Can Only See in Munich Guides & Tips The Best European Cities to Visit in November See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in Summer See & Do Germany's Most Beautiful Abbeys and Monasteries See & Do A Guide to River Cruises in Germany: What to Know See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in July See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in October Guides & Tips The Best European Cities to Visit in December Design The Most Beautiful Churches in Berlin See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in Autumn See & Do The Best European Cities to Visit in September US: +1 (678) 967 4965 | UK: +44 (0)1630 35000 tripssupport@theculturetrip.com © Copyright 2025 The Culture Trip Ltd Berlin is made up of an eclectic mix of districts From history-rich Mitte to the hipster heaven that is Kreuzberg and laid-back Treptow each of the city’s neighbourhoods offers something different to the curious urban explorer The Friedrichshain area also has a variety of DIY cinemas and outdoor screening venues, like B-ware Ladenkino and Durchsfenster whose name means “through the window cinema”; indeed you’ll need to climb through a window on the ground floor to visit but you’re spoilt for choice with cute bars and cafés in this neighbourhood Home to an industrial complex boasting a host of eclectic underground music spaces and clubs Treptow’s Ziegrastrasse is quickly becoming one of the most interesting spots for Berlin nightlife On the other side of the city is another calm and cleaner area, the heart of old West Berlin. As this area is quite large, not only a quieter crowd, but shopaholics and food addicts will also enjoy it here in Charlottenberg With Berlin’s equivalent of Oxford Street in the shape of the famous Ku’damm shopaholics will be in heaven on this busy street Foodies will equally be spoiled for choice in the surrounding area with a multitude of restaurants and plenty of al fresco dining a famous meeting point for artists and musicians and a popular local picnic spot once spring is in the air where you can relax in a well-maintained garden home to Neo-Baroque statues cascading fountains and a sweeping stone staircase get a tap beer in trendy bar Alter Roter Löwe Rein people-watch and observe epic sunsets – it’s only a short walk away from Volkspark Hasenheide which hosts an annual funfair in May and offers open-air cinema screenings in the summer with a focus on World War II air-raid shelters and tunnels – and the stunning 70-hectare Rehberge Park ArTono / Shutterstock An area that was once home to the likes of David Bowie, Christopher Isherwood and Marlene Dietrich Schöneberg is historically known for being the trendy center of Berlin To this day it remains the most liberal part of an already famously liberal city and a thriving center of modern art this picturesque area also happens to have recently welcomed many refugees Marzahn is where to go to see seemingly never-ending blocks of concrete and Communist architecture. You can get a real taste for the old east here but luckily artworks, colourful paint and nature add some much-needed life. Recommended by Megan King Adlershof in the south east of the city is where Berlin’s students of technology hang out This article is an updated version of a story created by Megan King A police manhunt has been launched for the suspect News | World German police have launched a manhunt for a suspect who abandoned a bag of explosives at a Berlin train station and ran away after being stopped by police officers "We are investigating all possibilities," a police spokesperson said adding that authorities had not yet been able to identify the suspect It was not clear if the incident was being treated as a possible terror attack Police said they stopped the man in the German capital's Neukoelln station on Wednesday afternoon He fled the scene and explosives were found in the bag he left behind according to a post on social media platform X The bag was brought to a nearby park where a controlled explosion took place The Bild newspaper reported that the bag had contained triacetone triperoxide, an unstable white explosive powder known as TATP and often used in extremist attacks on the public. Police could neither confirm nor deny the report on the type of explosive. But one officer, quoted by Berlin's BZ newspaper, said: "If this explosive device had gone off in the vicinity of a group of people, it would have had dramatic consequences.” Firefighters dug holes in the ground in the park before the bag and its contents were blown up, according to Bild, which reported that the explosion could be heard several hundred metres away. Dirk Wiese, an MP from Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democratic Party, was quoted by the Rheinische Post newspaper as saying that police "were obviously able to thwart an attack". "This clearly shows how high the terror threat is in our country," he added. In a statement on Thursday, Berlin police said: “With the intention of checking a man at Neukölln S-Bahn station...federal police officers approached him yesterday afternoon. “During the check, which took place at around 3:30 p.m., the unknown man managed to evade the measure. “The patrol tried to detain the man and grabbed a cloth bag that he was carrying. “The man managed to escape...dropped the bag and fled across the tracks in the direction of Lahnstrasse. British man dies after being rescued from floods in Spain, official says Man, 60, jailed for violent disorder after claim he would ‘bite’ officer’s face Joe Biden bites baby while wife Jill dresses as panda to celebrate Halloween Take control of your wellbeing with these great products and services “The bag contained, among other things, a package wrapped in adhesive tape, the contents of which were identified as explosives a short time later by the bomb disposal service of the federal police. “As a result, Berlin police officers who were also alerted to the scene cordoned off a green area on Thomashöhe that was intended for a controlled explosion. “Berlin fire brigade personnel dug a hole in the ground. “At around 7:50 p.m., the bomb disposal service of the Federal Police carried out a targeted detonation. No one was injured. Residents were also not at risk at any time. “It is still unclear why the man was carrying explosives. The ongoing investigations - in particular the search measures to identify and arrest the escaped man with the evaluation of video recordings - are ongoing.” “The investigation has been taken over by the department of the Berlin Police State Criminal Police Office responsible for explosives offences on behalf of the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office. Prince Louis steals the show at VE Day parade as he keeps dad William looking sharp and mimics brother George Prince Louis steals show with sweet antics at VE parade Ukraine 'launches stunning Kursk offensive' in major blow for Putin ahead of Victory Day celebrations Ukraine 'launches stunning Kursk offensive' in blow for Putin VE Day 2025 fashion: best looks from the day, Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte, Lady Victoria Starmer VE Day 2025 fashion: Princess of Wales to Lady Victoria Starmer New visa crackdown as Home Office plans to restrict applications from nationalities most likely to overstay New visa crackdown as Home Office plans to restrict applications London student nurse's roommate charged with her murder in Texas after fatal stabbing 'in row over cat' Roommate charged after London student nurse stabbed to death in Texas make perfect brain fuel for morning stints at the laptop – and the gooey vegan banana bread is famous Elegant tiles and artfully distressed walls bold paintings and a calm-but-busy vibe make a winning combo too take your cup of lightly roasted Fjord coffee outside to work at one of the tables on the picturesque cobbles of historic courtyard off Münzstrasse There’s no point heading to Neumanns if you’re not going to try a slice of homemade sourdough with braised fennel and goat’s cheese or a melt-in-the-mouth cinnamon swirl – the smell of baking bread will break even the most resilient spirit Make sure you book ahead if you don’t want to wait for a table Alternatively turn up when it opens at 9am to beat the crowds stretch your legs under the linden trees in neighbouring Boxhagener Platz The regular Sunday flea market is a stronghold of vintage clothes and vinyl What was once a brick-walled factory now houses an invitingly airy wooden tables and a window onto the roastery If you need a working meal, head to Weinmeisterstrasse, in the central Mitte district. Cosy KAFFEEMITTE serves massive brunch platters featuring homemade hummus guacamole and pesto with fresh rolls and fruit it’s not all about the coffee here; there’s hot milk and honey homemade mint or ginger tea and freshly squeezed orange juice They may not take credit cards (or provide wifi) but a peaceful spot and hearty meal so close to bustling Alexanderplatz is not easy to find Close to Checkpoint Charlie, the Cold-War era crossing point between East and West Berlin Westberlin is a hip cafe with stable wifi connection who can start working during the week from 11am modern interior and a fine selection of magazines – you’ll need discipline not to get distracted A range of specialty coffees provides a caffeine hit for productivity there are fresh juices to boost your brainpower St. Oberholz Founded in 2005, this cafe provides creative co-working spaces with wifi and great coffee – hence the appeal among start-ups This branch (there are a few now) is on Rosenthaler Platz in an iconic three-storey building once home to beer-hall group Aschinger there’s free wifi in the downstairs cafe and day passes for the upper level which offers better wifi and a quiet work area with spaces for teams to chat Beautiful Hallesches Haus is trendy and multipurpose a Kreuzberg general store meets cafe meets workspace light interior and slightly industrial feel combine to create an inviting space to work The wifi is reliable and most freelancers gather together on one long table at the back of the cafe beavering away while the friendly staff drift about bearing delicious coffee and lunch orders house and soft electronic music will often thump in the background The musicians, artists and creatives of Berlin make a beeline for the Michelberger Hotel on bustling Warschauer Strasse where it passes through the trendy Friedrichshain district trendy ambience and is a great place to work for people wanting to be surrounded by inspiring talent The cafe is open early in the morning and is a great place for a quick lunch drink or an al fresco beer or two with friends turning out delicious snacks and wines from small producers There’s a DJ playing from Thursday to Sunday to help get you in the mood for the evening On a quiet square along Boddinstraße, in the trendy Neukölln district, Schankwirtschaft Laidak is a casual cafe with a lovely laid-back ambience a relaxed atmosphere and comfortable chairs and tables from which to work this is a perfect spot to make serious inroads into that looming project delivering good wifi and providing a cosy spot to get productive This is a beautiful and large coffee shop in Neukölln with lots of wooden tables and ample light. There is even a bar-like swing chair for those who like a little movement while they work. This café is great because everything is self service – from ordering at the counter to clearing your plates – and the rest of the time you remain unbothered they have a fantastic selection of fresh juices baked goods and daily food specials with incredibly generous portions Caution: you may be asked to close your laptop during the lunch rush hour between 12- 2pm You can trust in the wifi at ZAZZA Gourmet Rösterei a popular hangout for online professionals in the Graefekiez neighbourhood cake and wonderful ambience will keep you happy and productive and the cosy café gets a good amount of natural light making it an all-round decent place to get some work done © Copyright 2025 The Culture Trip Ltd. All Rights Reserved. I did an artist residency in Berlin in 2017 and fell in love with the neighborhood I love its central location and walkability and also that there are so many trees and green spaces school pupils and university students demonstrated in Berlin-Neukölln against Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip as well as the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (Socialist Equality Party SGP) and its youth organisation IYSSE had called for the strike and rally Countless local residents and shopkeepers supported the demonstration and march which led from Richardplatz to Hermannplatz Many students had brought self-made posters on which they condemned the continued silence of the university administrations and the government’s complicity in Israel’s war crimes Students also joined in and streamed the demonstration on social media In the previous days, members of the IYSSE had distributed hundreds of leaflets at the Tesla plant in Brandenburg and at BMW in the north of Berlin calling on workers to support the demonstration for the current strikes at Deutsche Bahn national rail carrier and other companies to be extended and for “every transport of weapons ammunition and war equipment to Israel” to be halted A video in which IYSSE spokesperson Gregor Link spoke in front of the Tesla building in Grünheide and called on workers to strike against the genocide in Gaza was widely shared on Tiktok and other social media platforms Link explained that the strike was directed “against Netanyahu’s genocide in the Gaza Strip … which is supported by all the parties in the Bundestag [federal parliament] by the German government and by all its allies.” According to Link the airstrikes that have been carried out against Yemen and Lebanon in recent days show that the massacre in Gaza is “part of the ruling elites’ attempt to redivide the world.” “They are heading for a third world war in which nuclear weapons could be used at any time Link emphasised that it was not possible to stop the mass murder in Gaza and the development of world war by appealing to governments “The German government and its allies are not at all interested in the opinion of the population They react to pressure from below with dictatorship and a police state.” Only an international movement of the working class against capitalism could put an end to the genocide Link called for “connecting the strikes and the growing opposition to inflation and exploitation with the struggle against the genocide in Gaza” and arming them with a revolutionary socialist perspective “A system that cannot survive without war and fascism must be overthrown It is time for us to take up the revolutionary traditions of socialism.” Link recalled the assassination of Rosa Luxemburg exactly 105 years ago and quoted the great Marxist: The working class must “draw the conclusion that imperialism violent politics can only be fought by fighting capitalism by opposing the global political genocide with social revolution.” shop owners and local residents also spoke out and strongly condemned the genocide and the complicity of the German government Tariq from the Berlin Student Coalition stated that “a new movement of students against imperialism” was developing It was also directed against “the institutions that have never broken with their colonial The Berlin police had mobilised hundreds of officers to monitor the strike and rally and intimidate local residents the Berlin police had used massive force against participants in the annual Lenin-Liebknecht-Luxemburg demonstration But the protesters in Berlin’s Neukölln district were not intimidated by this They repeatedly chanted slogans against the genocide and the censorship of those expressing critical positions at universities Members of the SGP collected dozens of signatures in favour of the party’s participation in the European elections Fill out this form and we’ll contact you soon Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon We help you navigate a myriad of possibilities Sign up for our newsletter for the best of the city By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news Sign up for our email to enjoy your city without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush) Our newsletter hand-delivers the best bits to your inbox Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. 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Subscribe to Adweek newsletters Nike is helping young people in one of Berlin’s most misunderstood neighborhoods flip the narrative about their community The brand has launched a digital mini-series about the young residents of Neukölln a diverse district in Berlin that is undergoing gentrification—a trend evident with the new Nike Unite store that has recently opened there Neukölln is often negatively portrayed in German mainstream media because of its large immigrant and multicultural populations as well as social challenges such as high unemployment and crime rates The gentrification of the area has also been controversial Nike’s series entitled “Die Hitze von Neukölln” (“The Heat of Neukölln” in English) gives young local voices a chance to tell their own stories and talk about what their community means to them Subscribe now for unlimited access to exclusive insider reporting I want to receive emails from Adweek about products services and events that they feel may be of interest to me I want to receive emails from Adweek on behalf of carefully-selected third party partners about products By submitting your information you agree to Adweek's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and you will begin receiving our newsletters I understand by creating an account, I agree to Adweek’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and that I may review and update my marketing preferences at any time A code has been sent to your email address By subscribing you agree to Adweek’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Automatic Renewal and Cancellation By subscribing, you agree to the terms of sale, including the  Cancellation and Refund Policy You authorize Adweek.com to charge your credit/debit card at the annual subscription price at the amount noted above now and in time to  automatically renew your Adweek.com subscription every year before the start of each new 12-month term unless you tell us to stop.  Renewal rates are subject to change at any time with or without notice your service will continue without interruption The cancellation goes into effect at the start of the following billing cycle contact customer service at 844.674.8161 (U.S.) or 845.267.3007 (Outside U.S.) Brittaney is Adweek's creative editor based in London Adweek is the leading source of news and insight serving the brand marketing ecosystem The best of Time Out straight to your inbox Worldwide A few cities nearly always make our annual ranking of world’s coolest neighbourhoods. The likes of New York, Amsterdam, London and Tokyo are obvious shouts. And so too is Berlin how on earth do you decide what’s cool in a city like that This year, the Time Out Index poll quizzed 27,000 city-dwellers across the globe about their neighbourhoods Their insights were then combined with the opinions of our global network of Time Out editors and contributors And the coolest area in Berlin in 2021? Neukölln Neukölln sums up everything that’s exhilarating about modern Berlin the neighbourhood is a thriving embodiment of multiculturalism And with its leafy parks and beautiful canals Coming in at 11th in the overall ranking Neukölln has also become a focal point for the wider Berlin community wrote: ‘The streets truly come alive when the community rallies around social causes: Neukölln is an epicentre for protests and demonstrations which often start at Hermannplatz or the district’s Rathaus (town hall) and run up and down the major streets as participants holler in favour of racial justice and affordable housing.’  As everyone knows, there’s nothing cooler than social justice Not only is Neukölln a roaring culinary and cultural hotspot with tons of green space it’s also a hub of community-based action So next time you’re in Berlin and looking for the coolest spot in a very Want to know whether your area made the cut? These are our coolest neighbourhoods in the world for 2021 tiktokfacebooktwitteryoutubeAbout us an anarchist bar in Berlin’s Neukölln district has said that Palestinian groups aren’t welcome we think the bar should work like any other left-wing space internationally The Syndikat collective wrote that a meeting of healthcare workers to support the civilian population in Gaza could “of course” take place in the bar But they “condemn any attempt to relativize the act of terror and to instrumentalize it for antisemitic ends.” They wrote that “political groups that relativize or glorify the Hamas terror are not welcome.” Further “events organized or attended by such groups” cannot take place there Earlier in their statement, they claimed that the problem with the meeting on February 3 was it had been advertised on the Instagram account of Palästina Spricht (Palestine Speaks) The clear implication is that Palestine Speaks is antisemitic or supports terror against civilians The statement does not provide any sources for such a claim Such defamations are repeated endlessly about all Palestinian and pro-Palestinian groups in Germany’s bourgeois media. But we should look at what Palästina Spricht says themselves: They take inspiration from Black Lives Matter and they “aspire towards a political community which stands as an example for the Palestine which we want to build: free humanitarian and without any form of racism.” This is a left-wing Palestinian group. Anyone can see this because they regularly organize protests together with groups like Jüdische Stimme and Jewish Bund It would be a strange antisemitic group indeed that is in a permanent alliance with left-wing Jews the very same police are just down the road attacking the Palestine solidarity movement The very same newspapers are repeating the same defamations accusing protestors of being “aggressive” and “violent.” we have seen zero hostility to Jewish people and people from around the world (but not enough Germans!) are standing shoulder to shoulder to stop an ongoing genocide The Syndikat collective wrote that they want a “space where there is no place for racism hostility towards Queers or any other exclusionary ideologies.” We are a reading group that has been meeting in the bar for many months Cultural spaces that were once pro-Israel, like K-Fetisch have softened their positions and opened up to Palestinians as a result of discussions with international leftists we all have a duty to push back against right-wing defamation campaigns and support leftist movements around the world Syndikat has always been against the German state and so needs to show solidarity with people who are being attacked by the state right now We hope to open up a discussion so we and other international leftists can continue to meet at Syndikat Kazib's trial comes amid global repression of the Palestine movement it is essential that we join in this solidarity to denounce state repression against pro-Palestine activists both in France and around the world Prominent figures of the French Left held a press conference on April 24 to denounce the attempt by the French government to jail Anasse Kazib for social media posts in solidarity with Palestine Increasing attacks by the Far Right in French universities has become dangerous for the student movement Our comrades from Le Poing Levé (Fist Up) are calling for the creation of action committees to combat these attacks and turn universities into battlegrounds against the Far Right the prisoners in the Buchenwald concentration camp liberated themselves Their legacy is internationalist and antifascist Yet the far-right Israeli embassy determined who could speak at the official commemoration Left Voice members at CUNY and other CUNY students are launching the first issue of the CUNY Anti-Capitalist Zine on this May Day With the spirit that workers and students united can defeat Trump's attacks and organize to defeat this imperialist capitalist system We invite you to check out our first issue Minnesota hospital staff recently lured immigrant worker Aditya Harsono into an ICE trap proving hospitals care more about compliance than care Healthcare workers must organize to fight back against these attacks and students fighting genocide to mobilize together let’s unite to confront Trump in the streets 55,000 SEIU members in California have gone on strike A victory for these public sector workers would mean a victory for the labor movement and a defeat for Trump and the bosses Berlin is believed to be home to the largest Palestinian population outside the Middle East with much of the community based in the city’s Neukölln district — known colloquially as the “Arab Street.” Although just a few train stops away from the German capital’s iconic center Neukölln’s Sonnenallee (“Sun Alley”) feels a long way from the atmosphere of typical German cities and villages — home cafes with backgammon-playing tea drinkers Yet there is a more complicated reality behind this apparent portrait of multiculturalism. For one thing, there is no decisive figure for the number of Palestinians in Germany — because, according to immigration expert Ralph Ghadban there is no such thing as a “Palestinian” nationality in official statistics Palestinians are categorized as “stateless” or “undetermined” (German: “ungeklärt”) people — even those from the occupied territories who hold Palestinian Authority documents Moreover, Neukölln is considered one of the poorest and most structurally unequal neighborhoods in Berlin: 45 percent of children growing up in the district have parents who are recipients of social welfare and the average income per adult only just clears the official poverty line goes back to the days of the Lebanese civil war which began in 1975 and which drove almost one million people — including many Palestinians who were already refugees — out of the country Unlike the Palestinians who came to Germany in the 1960s to study the Palestinian refugees who fled the Lebanese civil war became especially vulnerable as the German government did not recognize them as political refugees a refugee is a person who is being persecuted by their government for political reasons Less than 2 percent of the Palestinian asylum seeker population who arrived from Lebanon won refugee status as the German authorities wanted to send them back; Lebanon however This led to the designation of these asylum seekers as holding “Duldungsstatus,” or toleration status which is simply a temporary postponement of their deportation living in the shadow of this policy has been accompanied by the harsh realities of unemployment and even failed integration — the result of political disinterest economic abandonment and forced dependency on a welfare state that is socially and politically disinterested in them the combination of being denied the right to higher education and vocational training and the steady reduction of social benefits over the years has driven some to break the law — whether by opening businesses without legal licenses the “constant fear” of deportation has compelled some of these asylum seekers to leave “their suitcases packed in one corner of the room,” Swiss-Palestinian academic Sarah El Bulbeisi tells +972 Magazine rather than allotting them even limited rights such as a state ID this status merely territorially binds them to a neighborhood such as Neukölln which they are not allowed to leave — even as they fear forced departure Bulbeisi, who has written about the “tabooization” of the Palestinian experience in Switzerland and Germany explains that the repressive German policies enacted against the Palestinians who came here mimicked the humiliation they faced back in Lebanese refugee camps and under Israeli occupation “What I tried to show in my book was that there was this erosion of life amongst the Palestinian community here in Germany,” Bulbeisi told +972 “Palestinians as human beings are unrecognized and there exists a moral occupation through the European imagination The systemic violence of ethnic cleansing by the Israeli state was continued by the symbolic violence they experienced in their German and Swiss refugee societies.” Bulbeisi stresses that the Palestinian collective memory of the Nakba must include the exiles they faced beyond their original expulsion from Palestine as well “The Nakba currently has a narrow definition of just the expulsion that took place in 1948,” Bulbeisi explains “But the Palestinians who came as political refugees from Lebanon and even those who came to study in the ‘60s and could not return are all included in this discursive form of expulsion “The definition of the Nakba is continuous,” she continues “It goes from a narrow definition to a much more complex structure that defines the traumatic existence of Palestinians here in Germany who are unable to return to their country of origin.”  a second generation German Palestinian with refugee parents also reflects on the tenuousness of Palestinian identity in Germany I realized how contested my identity as a Palestinian is once my parents tried to enroll me in school,” she recalls and the schools did not understand how that could be possible.” Abdelkader’s nationality was recorded as Lebanese — “erasing that I was in fact Palestinian and the daughter of refugee parents,” she says A 2005 report by researcher Monika Kadur and journalist Fadia Foda examined the group dynamics of this struggle over identity explaining how a community like Neukölln’s “Arab Street” became so concentrated and isolated from the rest of German society “The only Germans [the Palestinian community] had regular contact with were Federal Border Police immigration authorities and social offices,” the report states combined with the “insecure residency situation,” has led to the parallel development of “‘ghettos of immigrants with their own infrastructure” in order to make diaspora life more comfortable and marginalization around “living conditions relation to the host society and the position of women.” This brought Germany into alignment with modern European legal standards allowing those who have lived in Germany for decades to finally qualify for German citizenship as it finally gave Palestinian immigrants and refugees some sense of security and relief from the perpetual fear of inevitable deportation Yet that legal victory was swiftly followed by the German state reassessing in the wake the September 11 terrorist attacks and the start of the so-called “War on Terror,” what belonging looked like — and where Palestinians fit into that picture Bulbeisi explains just how much the figure of the Palestinian shifted with 9/11 Palestinian activism was heavily influenced by Cold War politics,” she says [Palestinians] were perceived as these ‘terrorist leftists.’ Now with the global ‘War on Terror,’ they have been Islamized and are seen instead as this ‘terrorist Muslim’ figure.” a social worker in Berlin originally from the Zaatar refugee camp in Lebanon who asked not to share his last name because of the sensitive nature of his job tells +972 that the post-9/11 environment eroded “The situation was different [in the past],” he says “At our educational institutions we held events We thought of ourselves as only Palestinian and we did so unapologetically — why should we give up who we are for a state who only disrespected and discriminated against us “That all changed with 9/11,” he continues “Being a Palestinian now meant that you’re a criminal we were surveilled and demonized for simple actions.” The “terrorist” framing was, explains German-Palestinian academic Anna-Esther Younes in a recent article subsequently attached to the perception of Muslims — and in particular Palestinians — as the chief perpetrators of antisemitism in German society a template underlined by the publication of reports in 2002 and 2003 by government-funded research institutes that foregrounded the figure of the “Muslim anti-Semite” who imported Islamism The German government responded to these reports by providing “political education” for immigrants in Neukölln and Kreuzberg, a Berlin district with a large Turkish community. These programs targeted Muslim youth — predominantly Palestinians followed by Kurds inside schools in Berlin as well as community centers and mosques — to prevent radicalization and offered to take them on trips to Israel to tackle antisemitic stereotypes along with more than 100 attacks on refugee aid workers in Germany The 2000 citizenship law and the post-9/11 environment therefore impacted every space that Palestinians occupied the strengthening of security policies deployed against Germany’s Muslim and Palestinian populations also targeted individuals who spoke out against Israel and — in the case of organizations and other groups — threatened to deny their use of public spaces Stop-and-frisk searches in front of mosques after prayer became increasingly common Yet even though the circumstances of Palestinian communities in Berlin have not dramatically improved activism rebounded among second- and third-generation Palestinians in the city in 2014 many organizations have been created with the aim of advancing the Palestinian struggle — among them Palestine Speaks Describing the massacre in Gaza as a “rupture,” Bulbeisi notes how young Palestinians took charge “adopt[ing] a policy of visibility that differed from the generation before them “Whenever you have these [Israeli] operations the oppression in Germany towards its own Palestinian population gets more severe — enabling the Palestinians here to identify with the Palestinians in Palestine,” Bulbeisi continues And that surge in activism among young Palestinians in Germany has been accompanied by a growing embrace of “I used to think living in the diaspora meant I was less of a Palestinian than the Palestinians living in Palestine,” says Layan Abhari a youth activist based in Offenbach am Main “But I learned in exile here in Germany that the struggle for return and liberation shapes a huge part of the Palestinian identity I truly learned the meaning of the saying ‘to exist is to resist.’” “Even though I was born here and raised here the Palestinian identity is crucial to me,” Sarah Abou Rajab an activist with the group Palestine Speaks “In order for Germans to even begin to speak about Palestinians you have to immediately concede crucial aspects of the struggle and of your identity in order for them to even listen to you or in order to be seen as a ‘good Palestinian’ or good ‘Muslim.’ “Facing severe discrimination for being Arab and Palestinian made me realize that instead of turning away from my identity in Germany I would instead embrace my taboo and hated culture,” Rajab concludes “I wanted to strengthen my Arab self — my Palestinian self.” Hebh Jamal is a Palestinian-American journalist and advocate currently based in Germany Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7 Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives Can we count on your support +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening In the south of Germany’s capital, a Palestinian community centre has survived the gentrification of what was for 30 years a run-down array of shops and pubs left in disrepair.  Located in the Neukoelln neighbourhood of Berlin Al-Huleh was set up in 1995 as the city’s first Palestinian society and since then it's been the first point of call for thousands of Palestinians and other Arab migrants new to Berlin.  Palestinians are completely marginalised from cultural life Al-Huleh’s founders, some of whom are now dead, included Germany’s earliest Palestinian migrants, who first arrived as students and medical trainees in the early 1960s. It wasn’t until the 1975 outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War that Palestinians began arriving in large numbers the Palestinian population was a few thousand Most Palestinians in Germany trace their arrival to the 1970s when Germany was split into the capitalist west and communist east and most are now in areas located in the former West Germany While Berlin has the largest Palestinian population by some margin In a similar pattern, almost all other migrants from Turkey, North Africa and the Middle East resettled and remained in the west of Germany Migrants to the one-time East Germany were typically from fellow socialist states like Vietnam although the community centre’s roots are in Palestine and sees Arabs from all over the region gather there.  “This organisation was established to help with the first steps in Germany to meet people and show them how things work here,” Abu Nader Now we mostly help members navigate German bureaucracy or with legal issues Sometimes we give relationship counselling the Palestinian Diplomatic Mission in Berlin estimates that there are over 100,000 people of Palestinian descent residing in Germany But because Germany does not recognise Palestinian as an official nationality most remain unrepresented in government statistics.   Of the roughly one million migrants from countries like Syria and Iraq who resettled in Germany between 2015 and 2017 but I’m actually Palestinian” during introductions on the first day of German class in one of Berlin’s language schools The Al-Huleh community centre is a 20-minute walk from Sonnenallee the bustling heart of Neukoelln and Berlin’s Arab community.  This iconic four-lane road is about five km-long but its best-known section comprises around 10 blocks at its northern end where hungover Swedish ravers queue for falafels under Palestinian flags hanging out of first-floor apartments local teenagers might be passing around a shisha pipe outside an open-air cafe It’s easily the most colourful part of Berlin where the German language takes a backseat to Arabic Of the dozens of Arab-owned and operated businesses in and around the streets At the Palestinian-run Al-Sham grocery store A4 print-outs in Arabic urge customers to secure their order from the next shipment of premium olive oil from Palestine Some Palestinian-run business are easy to spot like the stores selling “I Heart Palestine” scarves and trinkets next to miniature statues of Che Guevara one of the most popular restaurants on Sonnenallee where French tourists sit next to Syrian families hunched over giant shared plates stacked with shawarma and falafels The presence of Palestinians in Berlin extends far beyond the packed streets of Neukoelln.  Seven kilometres to the west in the quieter Schoeneberg district, the Arabic bookstore Khan Aljanub is co-managed by Fadi Abdelnour a Palestinian from Ramallah who has been an active feature of Berlin’s cultural scene for decades including as a curator at the annual Arab Film Festival up until a few years ago Palestinian film students serve glasses of Arak to Tunisians while DJs from around the world spin everything from house to Moroccan hip-hop and African electro to crowds that get rowdier as the night goes on Palestinians are also part of mainstream cultural German life beyond the relatively niche worlds of underground music and independent cinema is the son of Palestinians who fled the Lebanese Civil War.  a prominent journalist seen as one of the faces of a new was born in Munich to a Palestinian mother and Nigerian father.  Palestinians in Germany are often reduced in German media to a single political entity: hostile opponents of Israel a state that Germans shouldering historical guilt for the Holocaust feel compelled to outspokenly support As many Palestinian writers have discussed their mere presence is confronting to many Germans something once dubbed the “tabooisation” of the Palestinian identity Yet many German politicians also proudly declare their Palestinian roots becoming increasingly visible in the country’s political climate.  the daughter of Palestinian asylum seekers was a prominent former legislator in the Social Democratic Party until 2021 Jules El-Khatib is the top spokesperson for the Left party (Die Linke) the cosy Palestinian community centre in Neukoelln vice chairperson Samira Tanana is parliamentary leader in the neighbourhood’s faction of the Greens a position she uses to advocate for migrants like her Palestinian parents who fled to Berlin from the Lebanese Civil War in the 1970s who grew up in Schoeneberg and still lives there tells MEE: "I always knew I was Palestinian But my Palestinian identity is as important to me as my German side Tamira has spent most of her adult life advocating for migrants and other minorities.  She grew up speaking both German and Arabic She now makes an effort to pass the Arabic and Palestinian sounds and flavours of her youth to the next generation of Palestinian-Germans “I want to give her our folklore,” Tamira says but also traditional clothing and embroidery.“ As part of the cultural life of Palestinians in Neukoelln the first edition of a month-long series of events was underway Saot Festival put together by a trio of Berlin-based Palestinians was billed as an “interdisciplinary festival for solidarity with Palestine and intersectional struggles,” and is part of a growing wave of Palestinian activism and discourse in Berlin.  The programme comprised a mix of screenings readings and concerts from Palestinian filmmakers where participants were taught how to perfect classic dishes from different regions of Palestine “We wanted to create a space that brings Palestinians together,” Nour Safadi so we needed a platform for Palestinians to present their art.” who came to Germany alone and stateless in 2016 He is now a German citizen planning a visit to Haifa the city his grandfather fled during the 1948 Nakba Syria’s Palestinian refugees and their descendants are rarely granted Syrian citizenship but his residency status was as a Palestinian refugee could explain why he and his Palestinian collaborators are so determined to represent their identity in Germany we’ve always been told we should resist,” Safadi says we’ve reached a point where we have to talk This article is part of a series on Middle Eastern communities around the world Copyright © 2014 - 2025. Middle East Eye Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters Middle East Eye          ISSN 2634-2456                      An outreach programme assists and trains mothers from Berlin’s Neukölln neighbourhood to help newly-arrived immigrant mothers to Germany settle in their new home country The neighbourhood mothers are an integral part of Neukölln They play an important role in Neukölln´s integration policy to integrate the newly arrived refugee families known as “Stadtteilmütter in Neukölln” in Germany is a grassroots outreach project aimed at facilitating access to information and services that help families from immigrant backgrounds with young children of up to 12 years old It was launched in 2004 in Berlin’s Neukölln area with 12 Turkish mothers receiving training to support newly-arrived mothers It has now become a network of over 70 neighbourhood mothers from all different nationalities and helps to integrate families and create a cohesive community The project takes place in an area where nearly half of the current population is foreign-born Many schools in the area have a very high percentage of children who do not speak German as their first language of an immigrant background (often Turkish or Arabic) have passed the training and be living in one of the covered regions a neighbourhood mother receives training and then visits mothers in recently arrived or isolated families Neighbourhood mothers encourage the other mothers to attend women’s groups and to make use of local childcare facilities They also provide support to school-aged children The advice and support is provided by people from a similar background to the immigrant mothers The programme also works with local childcare centres The rise in immigration has led to problems such as the isolation of immigrants from the community pressure on local schools and difficulties in reaching out to families who do not necessarily speak German This project empowers women on both sides of the relationship: newcomers receive valuable advice while neighbourhood mothers gain employment income and status and boosts interaction with immigrant families and social cohesion Total investment for the project “Neighbourhood Mothers" is EUR 2.725.463 from which the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributes with EUR 1.050.828 from the Operational Programme “Berlin” for the 2007 to 2013 and 2014 to 2020 programming periods Referat IV C „Europäische Strukturfondsförderung BERLIN - The warm afternoon sun is shining down on the busy avenue of Sonnenallee in the southern Berlin borough of Neukolln Muslim families and Berlin hipsters mill along lazily here strolling from shop to shop while figuring out which restaurant to stop at staff at the pastry shop Umkalthum dish out trays of baklava and cremeschnitte Many locals and visitors insist that the highlight is al-Andalus a nearby restaurant decorated with large photos of early 20th century Beirut and that serves some of the best falafel in town “When we [Umkalthum] opened here in [Sonnenallee in 2001] there was nobody else here - it was very quiet,” said Mussa Fakhro a Lebanese national who fled to Germany in 1990 Fakhro says Neukolln has been totally transformed especially for Arabs,” he told Middle East Eye this south Berlin borough is seen as trendy and has blossomed into an epicentre of the city’s Arab community The Middle East influence has grown so strong Berliners have long started referring to Sonnenallee Street simply as Arab Street more than 3,000 refugees (mostly from Syria and Iraq) have come to Neukolln which is home to some 320,000 people and is one of Berlin’s most diverse boroughs More than 40 percent of Neukolln residents originated in a different country or have a parent that was born outside of Germany a Syrian who fled to Germany two years ago has now opened Bab al-Hara ice cream shop where he serves the same whipped ice cream he once served in Damascus He does so while wearing a keffiyeh around his forehead and sporting a well-designed moustache that is both Arab-looking and hipsterish Almadah says many Germans come in to eat and drink and are curious to find out more about Arab food and culture He loves chatting to customers about life back home and dispelling any stereotypes they may have about refugees “It shows them the other perspective; that we came here we are making a new life here,” said Almadah “And maybe that's not all of us - but it shows them [German residents] that we can be working and doing stuff.” Neukolln saw a major influx of non-Germans back in the 1950s and 1960s when many Turks came to Germany as “guest workers” and stayed The portion of migrants in the borough then expanded significantly in the early 1980s when Lebanese and Palestinian refugees started arriving ethnic Turks make up 11 percent of the population and Arabs 10 percent and growing businesses and restaurants - particularly on Sonnenallee - have signs in German and in Arabic while display windows boast everything from Palestinian independence memorabilia to Syrian pistachios and brides’ dresses with long sleeves and hijabs Experts say that the socially diverse population is in part down to geography with Berlin’s most immigrant-heavy boroughs - Neukolln Kreutzberg and Wedding - all lying in the centre of the city which helped to create integrated and mixed communities The contrast with many other European cities where migrant neighbourhoods are pushed to the outskirts could not be starker “The rate of residential segregation is comparatively low in Germany,” Professor Ruud Koopmans of the Berlin Social Science Centre told MEE “There is less spatial separation between immigrants and non-immigrants or between Muslims and non-Muslims in German cities than there is in most cities in other European countries.” According to Koopmans, the social mixture helps to eliminate racial boundaries that nourish radicalisation. However, concerns are growing that a housing shortage, a major problem in Berlin since the arrival of thousands of asylum seekers last summer Some 1,450 refugees in Neukolln are currently living in improvised facilities such as sports halls and other large buildings Local officials are concerned that the situation is creating an “unhealthy” environment and could lead to frustration among these refugees a middle-aged German woman who has been living in Neukolln since the 1970s told MEE that Sonnenallee has become much more crowded and noisy in recent years who visits a German pub called Simone’s located at the heart of Sonnenallee twice a week says she enjoyed the neighbourhood more back when it was quieter She insists she has nothing against refugees but says she finds it difficult to communicate with them and thinks that Neukolln is now full and should not absorb more newcomers “I have the feeling they don't like to come and try and connect with us,” she said One of the newcomers that Neukolln recently absorbed is Abdullah Saleh a 25-year old Syrian who arrived in Germany last October who rents a room in a shared flat a five-minute walk from Sonennallee is learning German and hopes to enrol in university in Berlin before the end of the year He said that when he visited neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Berlin where he has befriended many Muslims and non-Muslims they don't care what religion you have; they care only about you as a human being,” Saleh said One of the main concerns regarding Neukolln is that about 93,000 of its residents - a third of the population - are dependent on welfare benefits according to the borough’s migration officer While some of the welfare dependents are refugees like Saleh most were born in Germany or have been living in the country for decades The unemployment rate in Neukolln (13.9 percent as of May 2016) is the highest in Berlin and is well above the city average of 9.7 percent But authorities say they are determined to change this and are dedicated to continuing to provide state support which they believe is critical in a mixed community like Neukolln “We give a lot of state money to have socially peaceful living,” he said “What will happen if we lowered down the state money civil society and community groups are looped in and Mengelkoch holds monthly meetings to make sure everyone is playing their part and always looking for new ideas “We make the decisions together” with the Arab “It makes us come together to make decisions together to fight together with words and to lose fear,” he added Germany's leading Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the opposition Christian Democratic Party (CDU) have ordered high schools in Berlin's borough of Neukolln to distribute brochures titled The Myth of Israel #1948 During a public meeting of the Neukolln district council of Berlin on Wednesday, a motion was passed stating that "the district office is asked to advocate the use of the brochure "Myths#Israel1948" in Neukolln's secondary schools to confront existing anti-Semitic narratives within the educational framework of the school" "The expanded definition of antisemitism of the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) and the German government should also be communicated" The brochure is created by the Jewish association Masiyot which was founded in 2022 and enjoys the support of the Berliner Landeszentrale fur politische Bildung the Federal Center for Political Education.  It seeks to unite professionals from different disciplines to "raise awareness of authoritarian ideologies through education Neukolln is one of Berlin's most diverse and international boroughs with a large Palestinian community.  Middle East Eye has reached out to Neukolln's district council but has received no comment at the time of publication.  The left-wing parliamentary group of Neukolln has described the brochure as distorting history and has filed for an amendment of the motion The amendment asks the district office to prevent the circulation of the brochure in Neukolln's schools and urges the Center for Political Education to stop promoting the project The brochure states there are five "myths" around the creation of the state of Israel which are subsequently refuted in short essays by various authors that Jews and Arabs lived together in peace before Israel was founded responsible for the destruction of 531 Palestinian villages and the expulsion of 700,000 Palestinians between December 1947 and the summer of 1948 is promoted as a merely "defensive" Jewish resistance movement.   Under 'Myth #2: Israel was established on stolen Palestinian land' Masiyot states that the acquisition of land by Jewish immigrants to Palestine took the form of a legal exchange of capital for an official title deed At no point in history was land illegally conquered by Jewish immigrants Even land conquered following the wars of 1948 and 1967 and the subsequent construction of settlements which are internationally recognised as a violation of international law "Anyone who uses the accusation of land theft as an argument demonises Israel and denies its legitimacy acts out of antisemitic motives," Spaney wrote.  Mor states that "displacement during war - then and now - was nothing unusual" He also labels the UN's attention to the Palestinian cause "obsessive" and the Arab defeat of 1948 a myth.  "In the 1948 War of Independence, 6000 Jews were killed, fully 1% of the total population (was it a genocide?)", a Twitter post by Mor reads.  While Germany stands out with its unwavering political and military support for Israel, the German left is split over its stance on Palestine.  While a broad segment of German leftists have joined calls for global solidarity with Palestine, the "Anti-Deutsche" (Anti-Germans) group is historically pro-Zionist. Copyright © 2014 - 2025. Middle East Eye. All rights reserved. Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters. hectic metropolis and a historic center of the continent Its eight centuries of history show up in the names of its various neighborhoods; here Affluent Charlottenburg reflects its namesake: It was christened for Sophia Charlotte of Hanover two years after the palace’s construction was finished the area was home to a village called Lietzow and the palace was originally named Lietzenburg Its name was changed to Charlottenburg in 1705 and Lietzow was officially incorporated into the settlement in 1720 Located in Kreuzberg (“Cross Hill,” for the iron cross on the Prussian National Monument for the Liberation Wars that tops the hill) a Prussian eye surgeon and early pioneer in the study of ophthalmology Von Graefe is buried in the Protestant cemetery in the nearby Jerusalem Church and in 2015 an area school was named after him Neukölln started out in 1200 as a village called Rixdorf and in 1920 was incorporated into Greater Berlin The name translates to "New Cölln"—a reference to Cölln an old medieval town that was once located in what is now the nearby Mitte neighborhood Neuköln is the name of both a borough and the smaller neighborhood contained within it Like Neuköln, Mitte is both the name of a borough and a smaller locality within it and its name isn’t quite as apt as it once was Mitte translates to “middle” and was once the center of Berlin It’s still considered by many to be the heart of Berlin especially thanks to its location and history—during much of the Cold War it was surrounded almost entirely by the Berlin Wall and was the location of Checkpoint Charlie the famous crossing point between East and West Berlin Another neighborhood within the borough of Mitte Moabit’s name is probably derived from French Huguenot refugees who were living in Prussia during the time of prince-elector of Brandenburg Frederick William circa 1685 they named the area either after the Biblical kingdom of Moab—seemingly because Elimelech and their family sought refuge there during a famine—or the Plains of Moab where the Israelites fleeing Egypt camped before entering Canaan (A less popular theory is that it comes from the word Moorjebiet which means “swamp” in the Berlin dialect—Moabit was originally an island before the swamp surrounding it was filled in by sand—or even a corruption of a French term such as mon habitit—roughly meaning "my settlement.") The area was also once known as Pulverwiesen (“powder point”) when it was used as a parade ground by the military since it was near several gunpowder factories the neighborhood of Wedding is one of the poorest in Berlin and its origin story has nothing to do with marriage a 12th-century nobleman whose forest farmstead stood on the banks of the Panke River and caught fire at least twice before being abandoned in the 1700s the area was built up as a spa and health resort and it later became a seedy pleasure district it’s a working-class area known for its urban gardens Tiergarten is the name of both a neighborhood and a huge park included in the neighborhood; its name translates literally to “animal garden” in modern German But tier once referred not to all animals but to game animals the Tiergarten was a deer preserve until the 18th century and a deer is still featured in Tiergarten's coat of arms but it does contain the Berlin Zoological Garden and Aquarium Trendy Prenzlauer Berg shares a name with its hill (“Prenzlauer Hill”) a Prenzlauer being a person from the German town of Prenzlau takes its name from the Slavic men’s name Przemysław itself a medieval version of the Polish name Przemysł meaning a person who is clever or ingenious No word on which Przemysław of yore inspired the town’s name; there were several dukes and kings of nearby Poland who bore the name but the town seems to have existed before any of them did with the earliest known mention of the village being in 1187 Literally “Red Island,” the roughly triangular slice of land called Rote Insel within Berlin’s Schöneberg locality isn’t anywhere near a lake The reason it’s called an island is because it’s entirely isolated by train tracks on all sides making it accessible only by bridges that pass over the track The “red” part comes from the area’s strong left-wing/democratic socialist population during the late 19th and early 20th century—their official color was red as it was named in 993 by the 13-year-old Emperor Otto III—it translates roughly to “beneath the oaks.” Created in 1920, Friedrichshain gets its name from the nearby Volkspark (People’s Park) Friedrichshain, built to celebrate the 100th anniversary of King Friedrich II’s coronation. (The word hain means grove.) In 1933, when Berlin fell under Nazi rule, the district was renamed Horst-Wessel-Stadt the 22-year-old Berlin Sturmabteilung (stormtrooper) leader who was hailed as a martyr by propagandist Joseph Goebbels after being killed by members of the Communist Party in 1930 (Stadt means city in German.) The name Friedrichshain was restored after the war ended Many Berlin districts bear the word kiez in their names—it means neighborhood or community. Bergmannkiez is named for its main thoroughfare, Bergmannstraße, which was named after the wealthy Bergmann family the street was called Weinbergsweg (“Weinberg’s Way”) which still exists elsewhere in the city and is named for the nearby Weinbergspark (which is named for a café of the same name that once operated there) This area began life as just Treptow a village inhabited by Slavic people in the 6th century Treptow itself is a Germanization of the Polish word Trzebiatów which was once part of Germany but is today part of Poland It’s a place name possibly derived from the Polish word trzebia which means "clearing." The word Alt was later added to the village’s name—it just means "old." Although most of the town of Rixdorf was absorbed by the aforementioned Neukölln neighborhood part of it remains along the Neukölln border Rixdorf was originally a tiny historic village called Richardsdorf or “Richard’s valley,” and the area has been inhabited since at least the mid-1300s but the modern incarnation dates from 1737 (It’s not clear who the eponymous Richard was.) Rixdorf was a just nickname at first it’s part of Berlin proper and is often known as Böhmisch-Rixdorf for the Protestants coming from Bohemia who lived here in the 18th century In Mitte, the neighborhood of Nikolaiviertel—or Nicholas’ Quarter—gets its name from the St parts of which date from between 1220 and 1230 The church was almost destroyed during World War II but in the 1980s authorities began reconstruction efforts in the area meaning many of the area’s quirky historic-looking houses were actually built after the war ended © 2025 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved Meg van Huygen studied classical piano performance at Cornish College of the Arts with a sort-of minor in cartooning and Atlas Obscura among many other publications Mental Floss may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.",{"type":"8u","value":"il"},"AR_1",{"type":"8u","value":"in"},"This article contains affiliate links to products selected by our editors as well as products provided to Mental Floss for review purposes d) {\n h = h[d] = h[d] || {\n q: [],\n onReady: function(c){ h.q.push(c) },\n };\n d = o.createElement(u);\n d.async = 1;\n d.src = n;\n n = o.getElementsByTagName(u)[0];\n n.parentNode.insertBefore(d \"https://www.datadoghq-browser-agent.com/us1/v5/datadog-rum.js\" Initialize Datadog RUM and then measure TTFB/FCP\n window.DD_RUM.onReady(function() {\n // 3a Initialize RUM\n window.DD_RUM.init({\n applicationId: 'f3f16add-4ebf-4aad-9bb4-adb13da4d17e',\n clientToken: 'pub53fad8ec1eea29e2f92980d95072da2f',\n site: \"datadoghq.com\",\n service: \"voltax-sites-www.mentalfloss.com\",\n env: \"prod\",\n sessionSampleRate: 100,\n sessionReplaySampleRate: 0,\n trackUserInteractions: true,\n trackResources: true,\n trackLongTasks: true,\n defaultPrivacyLevel: \"mask-user-input\",\n });\n\n // 3b Measure TTFB & FCP once the page fully loads\n window.addEventListener('load' {\n ttfb: ttfb,\n fcp: fcp,\n });\n\n // Optional: log them to console for debugging\n console.log('[Datadog RUM] TTFB:' Affluent Charlottenburg reflects its namesake: It was christened for Sophia Charlotte of Hanover Neukölln started out in 1200 as a village called Rixdorf Like Neuköln, Mitte is both the name of a borough and a smaller locality within it Tiergarten is the name of both a neighborhood and a huge park included in the neighborhood; its name translates literally to “animal garden” in modern German Trendy Prenzlauer Berg shares a name with its hill (“Prenzlauer Hill”) Created in 1920, Friedrichshain gets its name from the nearby Volkspark (People’s Park) Friedrichshain, built to celebrate the 100th anniversary of King Friedrich II’s coronation. (The word hain means grove.) In 1933, when Berlin fell under Nazi rule, the district was renamed Horst-Wessel-Stadt Many Berlin districts bear the word kiez in their names—it means neighborhood or community. Bergmannkiez is named for its main thoroughfare, Bergmannstraße, which was named after the wealthy Bergmann family This area began life as just Treptow Although most of the town of Rixdorf was absorbed by the aforementioned Neukölln neighborhood In Mitte, the neighborhood of Nikolaiviertel—or Nicholas’ Quarter—gets its name from the St meaning many of the area’s quirky historic-looking houses were actually built after the war ended.