Where does legitimate criticism of the policies of the State of Israel end, and where does anti-Semitism begin? The question arises from a resolution adopted by a regional branch of Germany’s Left party addressing Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
“The left party in Lower Saxony rejects the Zionism that actually exists today,” is the headline. controversial text.
Where this dividing line runs is a question that Stephanie Student-Springorum faces again and again. is the director of Research Center on Anti-Semitism at the Technical University of Berlin and co-author of the so-called Jerusalem Declaration on Anti-Semitism (JDA).
That declaration, published in 2021, serves as a counterproposal to the definition issued by International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) in 2016.
For the JDA, an international group of experts reacted to what they saw as the IHRA’s blurred distinction between anti-Semitic speech and legitimate criticism of Israel and Zionism.
Left party members operating in gray area?
Historian Student-Springorum considers the Lower Saxony Left Party’s proposal on Zionism to be “vague” and therefore problematic. The wording of the title, she says, leaves the door open to the charge that it denies Israel’s right to exist.
“Why is the word Zionism being used when the issue is one of state policy?” he asked during an interview with DW, looking at the many aspects of Zionism — aspects of a national movement that culminated in the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Student SpringSpringorum said, “When you use the word Zionism, naturally you mean all people outside of Israel who support the state.” For this reason, she accuses the Left Party in Lower Saxony of deliberately operating in a gray area.
She explicitly excludes the National Party leadership around co-chairs Ines Schwertner and Jan van Aken from her criticism.
The party’s leadership duo have apparently distanced themselves from the Zionism proposal in Lower Saxony. “There can be no compromise on proposals that question the foundation of our party,” they said in a joint declaration.
“I find it very credible,” says Student‑Springorum. He said that both the leaders had commented on this topic several times when the opportunity arose. He further added that this is not something you can ignore with just a few stock phrases.
In response to DW’s inquiry about the proposal, the Lower Saxony Left Party branch wrote: “We know that the term Zionism is understood in different ways.” Policies and ideologies should be open to criticism and debate, the statement further said. “At the same time, we recognize that some of the formulations may be misleading. It is unfortunate when a proposal gives the impression of bias,” the party statement said.
In an additional public statement, the state association of Lower Saxony says it takes the criticism – particularly from Jewish organizations and unions – very seriously, and will try to dialogue with them.
Joseph Schuster, President of Central Council of Jews in Germanydescribed the Left Party’s Zionism proposal as “an attack on the right of the Jewish people to self-determination.”
An anti-Semitic commissioner left the party
In response to a motion passed by the Lower Saxony state association, Brandenburg’s commissioner for anti-Semitism, Andreas Büttner, resigned from the Left Party. He told DW that anti-Semitism is fundamentally anti-Semitism – because it questions Israel’s right to exist. Anyone who rejects “the Zionism that actually exists,” he said, is actually rejecting the State of Israel.
Buttner said he has spent years trying to advance this debate within the party. However, in the end he said that personal animosity also played a decisive role in his decision to leave. Although he welcomes the fact that the party leadership is now indicating awareness of the problem, he says it comes too late for him.
rise of the left
The current debate comes as the left party is riding a wave of momentum following its unexpectedly strong performance in the 2025 federal election. Hardly anyone expected that it would reach around 9 percent.
Although the party failed to enter the state parliaments in Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg in its most recent elections in March, it significantly improved its results, reaching 4.4% in each state.
However, political scientists Antonios Souris of the Free University of Berlin Told DW that the Left’s current lead in the elections may soon end. “The party is divided due to inconsistent stands on some issues,” he said. The Israel-Palestine conflict, which has been going on for decades, is obviously one of them, he said.
Souris also sees “the possibility of fragmentation” in the cultural sector and universities. This could be problematic for the Left when it comes to potential involvement in state governments. In the city state of Berlin, where elections will be held in September, the party is polling at around 15%, roughly the same level as the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) and the environmentalist Greens. The centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) remains ahead in the polls with 22%.
The Left Party was hoping to be able to form a three-party coalition in Berlin’s state government after the September vote – possibly even led by the Left. Now, political observers say those hopes could be dashed by a renewed debate over anti-Semitism.
Political analyst Souris does not consider the issue resolved: “It always depends on whether maintaining distance by the party leadership can actually help resolve conflicts at the grassroots level.”
This article was originally written in German.
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