Berlin cancels Palestinian cultural festival due to "red triangle" and freezes funding for organizing association

The "Salam" association issued a formal apology, blaming an "external organizer" for designing the publications without granting them final review rights.

German capital Berlin authorities canceled the "Palestine in Berlin" cultural festival, which was scheduled for January 24 and 25, 2026, following intervention from the occupation embassy, which objected to the use of symbols it considered "linked to the Hamas movement."

The cancellation decision came after "inverted red triangles" were spotted on the festival's promotional materials.

Although the red triangle is an integral part of the Palestinian flag, German security agencies recently classified it as a symbol of the Hamas movement, after its use in combat videos to identify occupation soldiers' targets.

Berlin had banned the public use of this symbol in late 2024.

The occupation embassy in Berlin condemned the festival via social media, considering that using public funds for an event bearing these symbols is "incompatible with integration principles."

Consequently, the municipality withdrew the event's license and placed the annual funding of 85,000 euros for the organizing association "Salam e.V." under official review.

For its part, the "Salam" association issued a formal apology, blaming an "external organizer" for designing the publications without granting them final review rights, and affirmed the association's disavowal of Hamas's objectives.

Despite this, authorities maintained the festival ban, as part of what observers see as a broad campaign by the Berlin government to restrict activities and symbols associated with the Palestinian cause.