Growing security concerns have prompted the Jewish community in Berlin to implement a protective measure: publishing only the first letter of community members’ surnames, rather than their full family names, in birthday announcements in the community newspaper, Bild reported on Friday.
The community’s monthly journal, Jewish Berlin, traditionally includes a “Mazel tov” section for good wishes to those over age 65, as well as to print birth and children’s bar/bat mitzvah celebration announcements.
The publication recently added an explanatory note to the section: “Dear community members, in light of current anti-Israel and antisemitic incidents, we are now printing only birthday and bar/bat mitzvah names with abbreviated surnames as a precautionary security measure.”
Speaking with Bild, Ilan Kiesling, spokesman for the Jewish community in Berlin, explained that this decision was implemented shortly after the Hamas-led massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, stemming from heightened security concerns for community members.
Kiesling emphasized that this precautionary step aims to “minimize the potential for hostile actions against our community members,” citing specific concerns about Hamas supporter demonstrations in Berlin’s streets and the dramatic increase in antisemitic attacks following Oct. 7.
Ahmed Mansour, an expert on radical Islam based in Germany, commented on the community’s decision to withhold full names from public view, telling Bild: “An increasing number of Jews in this country fear being publicly identified as Jewish and subsequently attacked.
“This represents more than just a tragedy—it signifies a fundamental failure. A failure of our political system, our society, and those who claim that ‘never again’ amounts to more than empty rhetoric,” he said.
