Above photo: AFP.
Germany is following the US lead in deporting legal residents for their opposition to Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
German authorities are seeking to deport four foreign nationals, including three EU citizens, over their alleged involvement in pro-Palestinian protests in Berlin, a move that has sparked significant legal and civil rights concerns, 972 Magazine and The Intercept reported on 1 April.
The individuals – Cooper Longbottom (US), Kasia Wlaszczyk (Poland), Shane O’Brien, and Roberta Murray (both Ireland) – have not been convicted of any crimes. However, they face expulsion orders under German migration law, citing vague accusations linked to demonstrations against Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
The deportation orders, which require all four to leave Germany by 21 April 2025 or face forcible deportation, have triggered internal disputes within Berlin’s immigration office. Officials, including agency head Engelhard Mazanke, objected to the legality of expelling three EU citizens, noting the lack of criminal convictions and insufficient legal grounds. Their objections were overruled by the Berlin Senate’s Interior Department, citing public safety concerns and alleged Hamas support – claims that the protesters and their lawyers say are unsubstantiated.
One protester, Shane O’Brien, was acquitted in court after being charged with insulting a police officer. Yet authorities continue to cite that incident and others – including participating in a sit-in and occupation of a building at the Free University Berlin and repeating chants of “Free Palestine” and “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free” – as justification for removal. Repeating the latter chant is illegal under German law.
The orders even invoke Germany’s “Staatsräson,” or national duty to defend Israel, as legal reasoning – an unprecedented move criticized by legal experts as constitutionally dubious.
The protesters, all long-term residents in Germany, say the expulsions would upend their lives. Longbottom, a trans student completing a master’s degree in human rights, fears returning to the US, while others worry about losing their community and stability.
“Will I be able to finish my master’s program here? Where am I going to live?” Longbottom said. “All of these questions are very unclear.”
“My life is here,” said Roberta Murray, 31, who has lived in Berlin for three years and normally enjoys the right to reside in Germany as an EU citizen. “I’m not making any plans for Ireland. I believe that we will win – and that we’ll stay. I don’t believe this will hold up in a court.”
“They’re being used as guinea pigs,” said their lawyer, Alexander Gorski, who likened the situation to US cases where immigration law has also been used to deport foreigners legally residing in the country for their support of Palestinians in Gaza.