Do not endanger the Spiegel: Berlin leftist Elif Eralp fears Hamas sympathizers

Berlin’s prospective governing mayor, Elif Eralp, faces a political crisis after a major news magazine published internal annotations she made during the authorization process of an interview. The 45-year-old leader of the Left Party, who led her party to victory in the recent state elections, wrote in the notes that she feared for the safety of herself and her family if specific names were used in the text. The incident centers on Ibrahim Ibrahim, a pro-Palestinian activist with alleged ties to groups designated as terrorist organizations by European authorities. Eralp stated on Thursday that she would not allow herself to be intimidated and pledged to combat violence and terror as mayor. The controversy stems from an interview conducted on Monday at the Berlin State Parliament building. During the conversation, journalists from Der Spiegel asked Eralp about Ibrahim Ibrahim, who appeared at the Left Party’s election night celebration in the Neukölln district. Ibrahim is described in the reports as a supporter of the Marxist-Leninist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which the European Union classifies as a terrorist organization. German security services view him as a sympathizer of the Islamist group Hamas, a characterization he has publicly denied. He previously referred to the chief planner of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel as a "martyr hero." According to the magazine, Eralp initially indicated in the interview that she was unaware of the extent of the problem regarding such figures appearing at party events. When pressed by reporters to confirm if they meant Ibrahim specifically, she agreed. However, when her staff sent the transcript back for final approval, they inadvertently included a document containing her handwritten marginalia. These notes revealed her personal anxiety. She wrote, "There is a PROBLEM," and noted that she and her husband did not want "specific names" mentioned because they had "fear of these people." One annotation referenced advice she had received from the Berlin State Criminal Office regarding organized crime cases, where officials had advised her never to name specific individuals. She drew a parallel to the current situation involving individuals with contacts to Hamas, writing, "I cannot put myself and my family in danger for SPIEGEL. What do we do now? Cancel the whole interview?" She added that she had previously condemned incidents generally but found it difficult to address them individually given the threat level. Der Spiegel explained its decision to publish the internal documents by citing the political implications of a future head of government expressing such fear. The magazine argued that in a city where the likely next leader writes such concerns in shared official documents, serious talk of internal security becomes impossible. It stated that it would be untenable if a governing mayor based political statements or decisions on personal or familial fear of specific persons or groups. The publication acknowledged that there were reasons against publication, primarily Eralp’s security concerns, but determined that the political weight of the notes outweighed those factors. Eralp responded to the coverage during a press conference on Thursday. She declined to comment specifically on the report, stating that the magazine had released private, internal content. Instead, she focused on her future role, declaring that she intends to ensure the safety of all Berlin residents. She vowed to act consistently against all forms of organized crime, violence, and terror, stating she stands by this promise to the citizens and will enforce it. She explicitly refused to be intimidated. Political opponents have seized on the incident, accusing Eralp of retreating before pro-Palestinian activists. The debate comes amid ongoing discussions about the Left Party’s connections to the pro-Palestinian scene following its electoral success in late September. Eralp, the daughter of Turkish immigrants, is poised to become the first Left Party member and the first woman of Turkish descent to serve as Berlin’s governing mayor. Her party secured 25.7 percent of the vote in the September election. Within her own party, reactions have been mixed. Former Thuringian Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow criticized the magazine for making public a person who feels unprotected, arguing that this makes her even more vulnerable. Meanwhile, coalition negotiations with the Green Party and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) are scheduled to begin next week. Eralp is reportedly considering legal action against the magazine and lodging a complaint with Germany’s Press Council. The incident has raised broader questions among media observers about the balance between public interest, privacy, and journalistic ethics when dealing with politicians’ security concerns. Ibrahim Ibrahim’s presence at the election party generated additional attention days later when his associates allegedly assaulted a reporter from the Bild newspaper who approached him about his support for the Left Party. The confrontation highlighted the tensions surrounding the activist’s proximity to the party leadership. As Eralp prepares for the formation of a new government, the episode underscores the complex security environment facing Berlin’s political establishment. The upcoming weeks will test whether her pledge to maintain order holds up against the pressures of her political base and the threats perceived by her staff.