Amnesty International sign. Photo: Boso Tasche / Flickr

A German group warned schools last week to be cautious about Amnesty International’s “Write for Rights” campaign, accusing it of engaging in “blatant incitement against Israel.”

The German-Israel society (DIG) condemned the education campaign by Amnesty International, which encourages schools and youth groups to take action in support of Janna Jihad. According to Amnesty, the 15-year-old Palestinian activist is being “harassed for exposing Israeli violence,” and faces “death threats and intimidation” for speaking out against “Israel’s oppressive system.”

Uwe Becker, president of the DIG, said that “Instead of being the impartial guardian of universal human rights, [Amnesty International] takes the side of Hamas and company and uncritically adopts the arguments of terrorists.”

“I condemn this form of institutional hatred of Israel I can only advise every school to be careful in dealing with this action and at least not to simply use the case study of the young Palestinian Janna in class,” he added.

“The Middle East conflict is turned into an Israel problem and completely devoid of any context it is stirring hatred against the country and its defense forces. Such a one-sided and partisan action only fuels the hatred of young people against Israel and should not be used in schools in Germany,” Becker urged.

According to Amnesty International, the December school action aims to support people or communities that have suffered or are at risk of human rights violations. Once signed up, teachers and youth leaders receive a toolkit with background materials, case studies, and letter templates. By the end of the action, students are encouraged to write letters to the Israeli government and post solidarity messages on Janna’s social media accounts.

“With all the appreciation I have for the important work of Amnesty International, whoever who puts Israel on a par with Belarus and describes the Israeli army as a violent oppressor which kills children in the West Bank is engaged in nothing more than incitement against Israel,” Becker said. “Propaganda in the style of Hamas takes place here and no balanced educational work.”