Eighty-eight years after the Night of Broken Glass on November 9 and 10, 1938, Jews in Germany are once again facing growing insecurity. Israel’s ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, warned on Wednesday that Jewish parents are now once again afraid to send their children to school.
“Jewish life is becoming a target again,” Prosor wrote in a statement on the platform X. He published his message on November 11, immediately after the anniversary of the November pogroms.
Prosor recalled that the violence of 1938 did not take place outside of German society. It had unfolded in the midst of everyday life. Neighbors had watched as Jewish businesses were ransacked, synagogues set on fire, and Jews attacked and murdered. Many had remained silent or deliberately looked away.
The Night of Broken Glass happened in the midst of German society. Neighbors watched. People stayed silent. Many looked away while Jewish businesses were ransacked, synagogues set on fire, and Jews were brutally attacked, persecuted and murdered.
88 years later, Jewish parents in Germany must once again live in fear of sending their children to school. Jewish students are being harassed and attacked at universities. Jewish businesses are being boycotted. Jewish life is becoming a target again.
November 9 reminds us not only of what happened back then. It obligates us to take responsibility today.
Remembrance and Sunday speeches alone are not enough. We must raise our voices when others stay silent. Not just on November 9, but every single day.
— Ambassador Ron Prosor (@Ron_Prosor) November 9, 2026
Prosor: Remembrance alone is not enough
The Israeli ambassador drew a direct connection between the historical experience and the current situation of Jewish communities. The memory of the Holocaust must not be limited to annual commemorative events and official speeches.
“Remembrance and solemn addresses are not enough,” Prosor wrote. What matters, he said, is speaking out publicly even when others remain silent.
The Night of Broken Glass in November 1938 marked a massive escalation of the Nazi persecution of Jews. Throughout Germany, synagogues were destroyed or set ablaze, Jewish businesses looted, and numerous people assaulted and murdered. Tens of thousands of Jewish men were deported to concentration camps.
Prosor’s warning comes against the backdrop of increasing antisemitic incidents in Germany since the Hamas massacre of October 7, 2023. Jewish institutions require heightened police protection, and many community members report experiencing insults, threats and hostility in their daily lives.
The ambassador’s statement is therefore directed not only at the Jewish community, but above all at German society and its political leaders. In his view, it remains to be seen whether Germany’s historical responsibility will also have consequences in how it addresses antisemitism today.
The concern of Jewish parents for the safety of their children is a particularly clear indicator of how significantly the sense of security within the Jewish community has changed.
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