Iranian forces strike US vessels in swift retaliation for tanker attack: Top military commander

Press TV – May 7, 2026
A spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said on Thursday that Iranian forces gave an immediate and decisive response to a series of US military aggressions in the strategic waters of the Strait of Hormuz and along the country’s southern coastline.
In a statement, Ebrahim Zolfaghari noted that the “aggressive, terrorist, and outlaw” US military, in violation of a ceasefire, targeted an Iranian oil tanker.
The vessel was transiting from Iran’s coastal waters in the Jask region, heading towards the Strait of Hormuz.
In a separate but simultaneous incident, another Iranian ship came under attack while entering the Strait of Hormuz, directly opposite the UAE’s Fujairah port.
Concurrent with these fresh acts of aggression, the spokesperson said that US forces, operating in coordination with certain countries in the region, launched airstrikes against civilian areas in the coastal provinces.
These aerial attacks reportedly targeted locations along the coasts of Bandar Khamir, Sirik, and Qeshm Island.
According to the statement, Iran’s response was immediate and decisive.
The armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran launched a swift counterattack, engaging US military vessels east of the Strait of Hormuz and south of the port of Bandar Chabahar.
The Iranian operation inflicted “significant damage” on the American warships, he said.
The spokesperson warned that the “criminal and aggressive” US and its allies must recognize that the Islamic Republic of Iran will, as it has in the past, deliver a crushing response to any act of aggression or violation “powerfully and without the slightest hesitation.”
Earlier, media reports said Iranian naval and missile forces had delivered a swift and precise response to yet another act of US aggression in the Strait of Hormuz, forcing American vessels to flee after sustaining damage.
A senior Iranian military official confirmed to IRIB on Thursday night that, following the unprovoked attack by US military aircraft on an Iranian oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, attacking enemy units in the Strait of Hormuz came under intense Iranian missile fire.
The aggressor forces suffered direct hits and were compelled to retreat in disarray.
It comes a day after US President Donald Trump suspended the so-called ‘Project Freedom’ after just 48 hours, which was aimed at forcing open the Strait of Hormuz.
It marked another humiliating retreat from the American side in the past few months.
Israeli ‘double tap’ strike hits paramedics in south Lebanon hours after renewed bombing of Beirut
The Cradle | May 7, 2026
An Israeli “double tap” strike targeted paramedics in the southern Lebanese town of Toul on 7 May, coinciding with brutal attacks across southern Lebanon and just hours after Tel Aviv’s first attack on Beirut since the start of the so-called “ceasefire.”
“An enemy drone struck the Toul area. After the attack, the Islamic Health Authority’s Civil Defense team went to inspect the site, before enemy warplanes launched another raid on the area, which resulted in the injury of two members of the rescue team and significant damage to the ambulance,” Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported.
Video footage captured the exact moment the Islamic Health Authority’s vehicle was bombed by the occupation army. Over 100 Lebanese medics have been killed by Israel since the war began.
Footage on social media also showed large explosions as a result of violent Israeli strikes on the town of Yater on Thursday. The town has been bombed 27 times over the past 24 hours.
Earlier, an Israeli attack hit the vicinity of the Evangelical School in Nabatieh, killing a delivery driver who was on duty.
Additionally, strikes hit Zefta, Qaqaait al-Jisr, Adchit, and several other Lebanese towns.
The violent attacks came as Hezbollah continues to confront Israeli troops occupying southern Lebanon.
“The Mujahideen of the Islamic Resistance targeted a D9 bulldozer belonging to the Israeli enemy army at Khalleh al-Raj in the town of Deir Siryan at 08:45 AM on Thursday, 07-05-2026, with an attack drone, and achieved a confirmed hit,” the Lebanese resistance announced.
Al-Jarmaq News, citing Hebrew sources, reported that 10 Israeli soldiers were wounded in an explosive drone attack in southern Lebanon and transferred to Rambam Hospital in Haifa on Thursday morning.
Seventeen soldiers are currently being treated at the hospital, including four in serious condition, the report added.
On Wednesday night, Israel carried out its first strikes in Beirut since Iran imposed a truce on the capital last month. The attack targeted a building in Haret Hreik.
The Israeli military claimed this was a targeted assassination of the chief of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Unit, identifying him as Ahmad Ghaleb Ballout.
Hezbollah has yet to comment on the deadly violation, which resulted in one death and multiple injuries.
Israel’s Channel 14 said Tel Aviv will continue assassinations and “act anywhere” against Hezbollah figures if the opportunity arises.
Other Hebrew reports said Israel does not consider this a ceasefire violation but rather a “preemptive” attack aimed at “thwarting threats.”
Since Tel Aviv’s war and ground assault against Lebanon began in early March, the Israeli army has occupied dozens of Lebanese villages, establishing a Gaza-style buffer zone area which has been labeled the “Forward Defense Line.”
Hezbollah fighters remain present across this line, carrying out daily FPV drone attacks which have become a major challenge to Israeli forces.
Occupation Bulldozes Farmland, Uproots Vineyards
IMEMC | May 7, 2026
On Wednesday, Israeli occupation forces invaded the Al‑Baq’a area east of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank’s southern region, and carried out a large‑scale destruction of Palestinian agricultural land, uprooting thousands of grape vines and bulldozing more than 200 dunams of privately owned farmland over the past three days, in one of the largest agricultural demolitions reported in the district this year.
Eyewitnesses said multiple military units accompanied Israeli bulldozers as they invaded the area at dawn, sealed all access roads, and prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching their land while the machinery destroyed entire vineyards, vegetable fields, and irrigation networks.
The bulldozing and uprooting of the privately owned Palestinian land was carried out under the pretext of expanding the colonial bypass road known as “Route 60.”
According to the Hebron Directorate of Agriculture, the targeted zone is part of one of the most important agricultural areas in the governorate, known for its high‑quality grape production.
Officials confirmed that more than 200 dunams were bulldozed and that 40,000 productive grape vines—many of them decades old—were completely uprooted. The destruction remained ongoing throughout the day.
Farmers from Al‑Baq’a said the occupation is bulldozing land on both sides of the bypass road at a depth of up to 20 meters, destroying vineyards, seasonal crops, and greenhouses.
Soldiers threatened anyone who attempted to approach their land and refused to allow families to salvage tools, irrigation pipes, or agricultural equipment.
Residents stressed that the area produces over 13,000 tons of grapes annually, in addition to 1,000 tons of grape leaves, forming the primary source of income for hundreds of Palestinian families.
The Al‑Baq’a area has long been targeted by the occupation and by illegal paramilitary Israeli colonizers from nearby colonies, who have repeatedly attempted to seize agricultural land, attack farmers, and block access to fields.
Local human rights groups say the current destruction is part of a broader campaign to forcibly remove Palestinian communities from fertile agricultural zones surrounding Hebron.
‘Israel’ kills Azzam al-Hayya, son of Hamas chief Khalil al-Hayya

Al Mayadeen | May 7, 2026
Azzam al-Hayya, the son of Khalil al-Hayya, leader of the Hamas Resistance movement in Gaza, was martyred on Thursday after succumbing to wounds he sustained in an Israeli attack on Gaza City on Wednesday evening, according to Al Mayadeen’s correspondent.
The correspondent reported on Wednesday night that Hamza al-Sharbasi was killed and Azzam Khalil al-Hayya was injured in an Israeli airstrike near the Jabalia bus stop in the al-Daraj neighborhood, in central Gaza City.
PIJ condemns assassinating Resistance forces, their leaders
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement condemned the assault, saying, “The government of war criminals in the occupying entity continues to escalate its crimes against the Gaza Strip.”
In a statement, the movement noted that “the occupation army is carrying out ongoing assaults aimed at assassinating Resistance forces and their leaders, particularly within Islamic Jihad and Hamas.”
It further highlighted that the latest in these assassinations was “the treacherous airstrike that targeted Hamza al-Sharbasi, a leader in the al-Qassam Brigades, yesterday.”
“The attack also injured several others, including the martyr Azzam, the son of Khalil al-Hayya, the head of the Hamas movement in Gaza, who succumbed to his wounds this morning,” the movement added.
The PIJ accused “Israel” of using the strikes to impose its terms on Gaza, evade agreed-upon ceasefire commitments, block reconstruction efforts, and continue committing massacres, including by disrupting the Rafah crossing.
‘Israel’ continues its genocide amid so-called ceasefire
In a separate incident on May 6, and as part of ongoing Israeli violations, several Palestinians were wounded when an Israeli strike targeted a displacement camp in Gaza City’s al-Zaytoun neighborhood.
Further south, police colonel Naseem al-Kalzzani was killed and others were injured after an Israeli strike targeted his vehicle in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis.
Hamas said the escalation by the Israeli occupation forces, which continued to target civilians in Gaza, constituted a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement. The movement called on the United States administration and the guarantor states of the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement to intervene immediately to restrain Israel.
Despite the ceasefire reached in October 2025, Israeli forces have continued near-daily aggression across the Gaza Strip.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, the death toll has risen to 837, with 2,381 wounded and 769 bodies of martyrs retrieved since the ceasefire took effect.
The cumulative toll since the start of the Israeli genocide on 7 October 2023 has reached 72,619 killed and 172,484 injured.
What has Guterres supported in Gaza?
By Ramona Wadi | MEMO | May 7, 2026
In March this year, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres had stated that the UN is “cooperating actively with structures created by the Board of Peace.” By the time Guterres made his statement, US Board of Peace High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov had already warned, in February this year, that Hamas bears the burden of Israel’s full resumption of genocide in Gaza if it fails to disarm.
In a letter that was quoted yesterday in Israeli media, Mladenov and senior US official Aryeh Lightstone warned the Palestinian technocratic government, “Failure by Hamas to accept the framework within a reasonable timeframe, as determined by the Board of Peace and after consultation with the parties, shall render such commitments null and void.”
Two days before Mladenov’s warning was made public, a senior military official said that it was inevitable that Israel would resume “fighting” in Gaza if Hamas refuses to disarm. Israel has in fact not stopped colonising Gaza through violence – what we are seeing now is a slower form of genocide in the aftermath of a very visible genocide which world leaders and diplomats preferred to watch rather than stop.
Mladenov is aware that Israel kept killing Palestinians in Gaza after the ceasefire came into effect, that more buildings were detonated, that the Yellow Line keeps expanding in Gaza besides already occupying more than half of its shrinking territory.
Therefore, the pretence of a before and after the ceasefire does not hold. It is merely a convenient veneer for the Board of Peace’s next rhetorical step that asserts its agreement with genocide.
Israel violated the October 2025 ceasefire multiple times, so in a way the letter is not a warning of novelty. However, the text of the October ceasefire does not stipulate that Hamas should disarm for the ceasefire to hold; that was a clause for the second phase of the ceasefire. The US Board of Peace is therefore saying that Israel is exempt from upholding its obligations stipulated in Phase One if Hamas does not agree to a clause from Phase Two.
In the entire Western narrative of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Mladenov is not employing a new tactic when blaming Hamas for refusing to disarm. However, exploiting the ceasefire text, which was based on the resumption of humanitarian aid and the return of Israeli hostages, is insightful in terms of how institutions hold the power to manipulate the parameters of international law, accountability and impunity. The October 2025 ceasefire text, which was not dependent on Hamas disarming, can now be discarded simply because the focus is on Phase Two and diplomacy will not check the specific stipulations of Phase One.
Mladenov and Lightstone, therefore, are legitimising institutional complicity with genocide.
This is one clear admission in which a body supposedly tasked with rebuilding Gaza and its governance will not hold Israel accountable for continuing to commit genocide.
By stepping back, the spectator tactic has now been fully employed by Mladenov and the so-called Board of Peace.
When has genocide even been advocated for so smoothly among diplomats? Guterres should take note of what he and the UN have supported.
UAE received $80m in EU farming subsidies as calls grow for sanctions over Sudan genocide
MEMO | May 7, 2026
The United Arab Emirates’ ruling Al Nahyan family has benefited from more than €71 million (US $80 million) in European Union farming subsidies, even as campaigners intensify calls for sanctions against senior Emirati officials over Abu Dhabi’s alleged role in the Sudan genocide.
A cross-border investigation by DeSmog, shared with the Guardian, found that subsidiaries controlled by the Al Nahyan family collected more than €71 million over six years through farmland in Romania, Italy and Spain. The payments were made under the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which distributes around €54 billion (US $60 billion) a year to farmers and rural areas across the bloc.
The investigation traced 110 subsidy payments between 2019 and 2024 to a network of companies and subsidiaries controlled by the UAE ruling family and Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ. The largest payments were linked to Agricost, a Romanian agricultural company which owns what the Guardian described as the EU’s single largest farm, covering 57,000 hectares.
The findings have raised fresh questions about how European public funds are being channelled to foreign state-linked investors and ultra-wealthy landowners. The UAE’s European agricultural holdings form part of Abu Dhabi’s wider food security strategy, aimed at securing crops and animal feed for a country which imports most of its food.
The revelations come as pressure grows in the UK for greater scrutiny of the UAE’s role in Sudan. Human rights organisation FairSquare has asked the British government to investigate links between Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE deputy prime minister and owner of Manchester City Football Club, and Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
FairSquare’s sanctions submission alleges that the UAE has been the “prime external driver” of the Sudan conflict and cites evidence, including from the UN Panel of Experts, that Abu Dhabi has supplied weapons, ammunition and other support to the RSF since June 2023, in violation of a UN arms embargo. The UAE has repeatedly denied arming the RSF.
The RSF has been accused of mass atrocities in Sudan, including in Darfur. FairSquare’s submission notes that the UN has described RSF violence in El-Fasher as “shocking in its scale and brutality” and bearing “the hallmark of genocide”. The group argues that the UK should examine whether Sheikh Mansour’s alleged role meets the threshold for sanctions.
Trump gives green light for new arms deliveries to Ukraine
By Lucas Leiroz | May 7, 2026
Apparently, the Trump administration’s recent pro-war shift is not limited to the Middle East. The Republican administration seems increasingly yielding to the interests of the military lobby and the so-called “deep state,” approving measures that will harm international security and further worsen current tensions (in addition to contributing nothing to US people’s legitimate interests).
Recently, the Trump administration gave the green light to the sale of precision-guided bomb kits to Ukraine. The package is estimated to be worth over 373 million dollars. The approval is a direct consequence of strong congressional pressure on the administration. Although the White House had been trying to freeze discussions on the subject, lawmakers – many of whom directly represent the interests of the military-industrial complex – had long been pushing for the measure’s approval.
The approved equipment is the JDAM-Extended Range (JDAM-ER), which can be used to convert heavy bombs into guided munitions, increasing the impact power of attacks. These munitions are generally guided by a GPS system, and can hit targets tens of kilometers away. Depending on where these bombs are launched from, they could destroy numerous civilian targets in Russian border regions.
The approval was announced by the US State Department itself in a document published on May 5. Interestingly, the text appears to have been written in an “optimistic” tone, celebrating the approval as a kind of “victory” and stating that the measure will significantly strengthen Ukraine’s defense capabilities. The Department said this new aid package will not alter the military balance in the conflict, but will allow Ukraine to engage more effectively in “self-defense” operations.
“The proposed sale will improve Ukraine’s capability to meet current and future threats by providing it with additional means to conduct self-defense missions and enhance regional security (…) [The package] will not alter the basic military balance in the region,” the statement reads.
The way the State Department simultaneously “celebrated” the news and tried to disguise its nature, pretending there was no escalating attitude, indicates that the US pro-war lobby is not only active in Congress but also within the government agencies themselves. This is not surprising, considering that the presence of representatives from the defense industry and Western transnational elites among American state officials and bureaucrats is a fact long denounced by various insiders and investigative journalists.
It seems clear that recently these parliamentarians and bureaucrats representing the American “deep state” (the network of businessmen and criminals who control local politics behind the scenes) have managed to obtain several substantial victories in Washington. Since Trump made the irresponsible decision to attack Iran and start a new war in the Middle East, the original MAGA promises – focused on economic nationalism and non-interventionism – seem to have been forgotten. Consequently, Trump’s previous promises of peace in Ukraine, which even included the possible suspension of military aid to Kiev, are now completely ignored.
In fact, the new assistance will not change the situation on the battlefield in any way. Ukraine has already used JDAM-ER systems before, adapting them to its fighter jets for air operations. Russia has been successful in repelling these attacks using electronic warfare mechanisms, which easily affect the operational capabilities of GPS-guided systems. In practice, Russia will continue to have a significant military advantage in all sectors, and the new aid will not be a “game changer” for the regime.
Nevertheless, it is reprehensible that Trump is deepening a stance that will only escalate the conflict. Even without significantly changing the military landscape, these systems can facilitate illegal attacks against border regions – something that has already become commonplace in Ukraine. Washington is once again becoming complicit in the crimes of the Ukrainian regime against Russian civilians, ignoring the original non-interventionist proposals of the MAGA project.
It is wrong to attribute all responsibility for these recent events to Trump. It is well known that the US president himself does not have enough political power to resist the pressure from the various lobbies that control Congress and government agencies. However, Trump needs to demonstrate more ability to contain the interests of these lobbying groups if he does not want to lose his legitimacy and popularity.
Trump was elected on promises of peace and domestic economic reforms. Now, his policy is heading towards international interference to the detriment of national interests. Either he reverses this in time or his popularity will erode.
Lucas Leiroz, member of the BRICS Journalists Association, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, military expert.
You can follow Lucas on X (formerly Twitter) and Telegram.
U.S. Blockade Against Cuba Must End Immediately: China
teleSUR – May 7, 2026
On Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian reiterated that China supports Cuba’s sovereignty, expressed opposition to foreign interference in its internal affairs and called on U.S. authorities to end the blockade against the Caribbean Island.
“China firmly supports Cuba in defending its national sovereignty and security, and resolutely opposes interference in its internal affairs,” Lin stated.
“Beijing urges the United States to immediately end the blockade, sanctions and any form of coercion and pressure against Cuba,” the spokesperson said in response to a question regarding measures announced by U.S. President Donald Trump that expanded sanctions against the Caribbean country.
Lin stressed that the United States has further intensified illegal unilateral sanctions against Cuba, “seriously undermining the Cuban people’s rights to subsistence and development, and seriously violating the basic norms governing international relations.”
China rejects the January military attack against Venezuela
The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson also rejected the military attack against Venezuelan territory that occurred on Jan. 3 when U.S. soldiers kidnapped President Nicolas Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.
“Four months ago, the U.S. carried out a brazen military attack against Venezuela and forcibly took control of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife. This hegemonic act constitutes a serious violation of international law, infringes upon Venezuela’s sovereignty, and threatens peace and stability in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Lin stated.
“China firmly opposes this. We will continue, as always, supporting Venezuela in defending its sovereignty, dignity and legitimate rights,” he stressed.
Iran War Reality BITES – SPIN HARDER /Lt Col Daniel Davis & Mario Nawfal
Daniel Davis / Deep Dive – May 6, 2026
German arson case: Antisemitism commissioner’s inner circle now top suspects after police raids
Remix News | May 5, 2026
The investigation into the early 2026 firebombing of Brandenburg Antisemitism Commissioner Andreas Büttner’s home is nearing a conclusion, but the results have stunned the public.
In a dramatic reversal of the initial narrative, the Brandenburg State Criminal Police Office has executed a series of raids across Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania targeting the commissioner’s own close associates.
While the case was initially treated as an Islamist or antisemitic hate crime, the German Public Prosecutor General’s Office now identifies two men from Büttner’s “own circle,” which belongs to the left, as the primary suspects, reveals Tagesspiegel in a new exclusive report.
Initially believed to be a pro-Palestinian terror arson attack
On the night of Jan. 4, 2026, a shed on Büttner’s Templin estate was incinerated, and a red Hamas triangle – a mark of the Palestinian terrorist (sic) group – was found defaced on his front door. The attack, which caused approximately €20,000 euros in damage, triggered a massive increase in the commissioner’s personal security.
However, the “antisemitic or Islamist motive” is now being questioned following several key investigative breakthroughs.
The first has to do with DNA evidence. Forensic teams reportedly matched DNA from Lukas S. to threatening letters sent to the Brandenburg State Parliament, which branded Büttner a “Zionist pig” and a “traitor,” and expressed a clear intent to “kill” him.
One letter addressed to Büttner contained a mysterious “gray substance” and “granular substance,” which prompted an emergency response by police specialists at the parliament’s mailroom.
The second point of evidence has to do with the specific arson attack. Police discovered by chance a smoldering fire 20 kilometers from the crime scene containing gloves and barbecue lighter fluid. When investigators connected them to the arson, the items were traced back to a purchase at a hardware store in Lower Saxony that involved a debit card belonging to one of the suspects, the same one who is a business partner of Büttner.
Suspects are two Germans with deep ties to left-wing causes and combating antisemitism
The suspects, identified as Daniel R. and Lucas S., are not strangers to the commissioner; they are his “friends and business partners,” according to Tagesspiegel.
All three men are linked through a “management consulting” firm established in 2023, where Büttner is the majority shareholder and Daniel R. serves as the managing director. Furthermore, the suspects are active in a non-profit initiative for “political education and commemorative work” for which Büttner is the “sole patron.”
Despite the violent nature of the charges — which include arson and the use of “symbols associated with unconstitutional and terrorist organizations” — the trio appeared to maintain an amicable relationship after the attack.
Reports indicate they met in Berlin and Potsdam and even attended a performance of “The Flying Dutchman” at the Leipzig Opera in February.
When confronted with the news that his business partners were under investigation, Andreas Büttner maintained his distance, stating: “I had—and still have—absolutely no knowledge of this matter. Naturally not.”
He also noted he is cooperating with police, noting, “The police are investigating. I cannot say anything about this. I have confidence in the police investigation.”
The revelation complicates the wave of international support Büttner received following the fire.
At the time, Israel’s Ambassador Ron Prosor condemned the act as terrorism, stating that the Hamas triangle represented attacks on those with different views “in Gaza just as in Brandenburg.”
Federal Antisemitism Commissioner Felix Klein similarly labeled the event a “direct attack on our democracy.”
The German Public Prosecutor continues to investigate, with more details of why the attack occurred potentially coming to light in the future.
Meanwhile, commentators are addressing the remarkable details of the case and the suspects allegedly behind the firebombing.
Jan Karon, a journalist and author, wrote on X:
“Daniel R. and Lucas S., who are suspected of carrying out the arson attack (complete with Hamas triangles) on the antisemitism commissioner Andreas Büttner, practically embody the epitome of the progressive NGO complex.
The two, as the text states citing a source, had “made a business model out of mediating funding to people and organizations.” The article reconstructs their activities: nationwide courses and projects, €98,000 in funding from the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, the “German Engagement Award,” the fight against racism, and an explanatory channel on YouTube.
The two men posed in 2019 at the Chancellery next to Merkel—as young people “committed to democracy.”
This was followed by invitations to the EU Parliament, the Bundestag, and the Federal Press Ball. In 2020, they founded a foundation for educational work, from which a company later emerged that sought to commemorate the child victims of National Socialism (!) —and to this end collected donations to produce 5,000 pairs of fiberglass shoes (!!).
R. and S. also planned to rebuild the destroyed synagogue in Prenzlau with donations.
They are said to have pressed the antisemitism commissioner Büttner to “fly to Israel” with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Büttner founded a company with them that is dedicated to that (federally funded) fight.
One is left speechless.
Previous hate hoaxes
If proven that this was indeed a staged hate attack, it would not be the first time that a hate hoax occurred in recent years.
In 2022, famed German-Israeli musician Gil Ofarim was accused of lying about an alleged antisemitic incident inside the Leipzig Hotel Westin after video footage and other evidence led police to doubt his claims, but not before the case sparked national headlines in Germany.
According to the singer Ofarim, who was born in Israel but found success as a musician in Germany, an employee at the check-in counter asked him to remove his Star of David chain from sight if he wanted to be checked in. Ofarim made the claim in an emotional Instagram video entitled “Antisemitism in Germany 2021,” where he ended his story by holding up the necklace chain in question. The viral video sparked protests involving thousands of people in front of the hotel, and the claims were spread widely by antisemitism watchdogs.
After Ofarim’s claims, video footage obtained by Bild newspaper is calling into question Ofarim’s version of events, leading the case to fall apart and for the hotel employee to be completely cleared of wrongdoing after an independent investigation.
In a commentary piece on Germany’s Junge Freiheit, the Ofarim case was presented as a clear example of previous hate hoaxes that have plagued Germany in the past. Like many other cases later identified as false or misleading, the Ofarim antisemitism claim was widely reported in world media outlets, including the Guardian and CNN.
Junge Freiheit pointed to the Sebnitz case, where a mob of skinheads supposedly drowned a toddler, only for it to turn into one of the biggest debacles in Germany’s modern history. There is also the case of Mittweide, where nobody had actually carved a swastika on her forehead (police later proved she did it herself). In Müglen, foreigners were not hunted on the streets, and in Chemnitz, the same accusation that sparked a nationwide outcry has never been proven. And in Dresden, an Eritrean asylum seeker was not murdered by right-wing extremists from the Pegida movement, but killed by a fellow Eritrean.
