Female activist fined in Berlin for using pro-Palestinian slogan

A Berlin court on Tuesday fined a woman 600 euros ($655) for using the phrase "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" at a protest, in a ruling slammed as a "dark day for freedom of expression" by her lawyer.

The 22-year-old named only as Ava M. was found guilty of using the slogan at a banned gathering in Berlin's Neukoelln district on October 11, according to a court spokeswoman.

The court concluded that the woman's use of the phrase so soon after Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel meant it "could only be understood as a denial of Israel's right to exist and an endorsement of the attack", the spokeswoman said.

"From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" is seen by some as a call for the destruction of Israel, though others say it simply appeals for equality for Palestinians and Israelis.

The phrase was outlawed by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser in November as part of a ban on the activities of Palestinian resistance group Hamas in Germany.

But the ban is legally controversial, and courts in different parts of Germany have handed down different rulings on cases involving the phrase, with many finding it to be permissible.

Lawyer Alexander Gorski, who represented the woman in Berlin, said it was "a dark day for freedom of expression".

"My client only wanted to express her hope for a future of democratic coexistence for all people in the region," he told AFP, adding that his client would appeal the decision.

The October 7 attack by Hamas on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel's military retaliation to wipe out Hamas has killed at least 39,653 people, also mostly civilians, according to data from the health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza.

Germany's response to the Hamas attack and ensuing war has been driven by guilt over its own dark past, and the slaughter of six million Jews by the Nazis during the Holocaust.

The country has steadfastly backed Israel in the conflict, but its unwavering stance has led to claims that Palestinian voices are being marginalised.