The appearance of Issa Remmo, identified by German media as the head of the well-known Remmo clan, at an election party of Die Linke (The Left) sparked a heated controversy in Berlin. The episode occurred during the party’s election celebration in Neukölln and quickly raised questions about the ties and the controls at events of the German left.
Hermann Tertsch
The image of the clan leader alongside guests at the party was spread on social media and also picked up by various German media outlets. The Spanish journalist and MEP Hermann Tertsch sharply questioned the episode and pointed out that Remmo is considered a figure linked to Berlin’s criminal underworld.
Issa Remmo appeared at Die Linke’s election party
According to the German press, Remmo showed up at the party’s election celebration in Neukölln, where he even gave statements to the Berliner Morgenpost about the accusations of antisemitism hanging over parts of Die Linke.
Remmo himself told the German outlet that he felt “supported by a party for the first time” in Germany. He also defended Die Linke against the accusations of antisemitism and said he would not vote for a politician who was anti-Jewish.
The episode is especially striking because Die Linke was celebrating its election result in Berlin, while the presence of a figure publicly associated with the Remmo clan was drawing criticism from various political quarters.
The German left distanced itself from the visitor
After Remmo’s presence became public, representatives of Die Linke tried to distance themselves.
Die Linke’s Neukölln organization maintained that it was a public event that people who had not been invited could attend, and stated that Remmo was not on the guest list.
“The person and his specific presence were unknown to us,” explained a party spokeswoman, who added that there are no political or personal ties with Remmo.
Die Linke’s candidate, Elif Eralp, also later maintained that Remmo had not been invited and that he was removed from the venue.
Kai Wegner questioned Remmo’s presence
The mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner, also reacted publicly to the episode and described Remmo’s appearance as a worrying sign.
Wegner argued that a political force that aims to take on the responsibilities of government in Berlin must make clear that there is no closeness of any kind to structures linked to organized crime. He also demanded an explanation of how it was possible for Remmo to get into the celebration.
The controversy later gained another element: German media reported that Ibrahim Ibrahim, singled out by German organizations and media for his support for the terrorist organization PFLP and linked to anti-Israel activism, appeared alongside Remmo.
The episode thus opened a new debate about Die Linke, its political spaces and the controls over who takes part in its activities, amid an intense discussion about security, antisemitism and extremism in Berlin.
Read the full article at La Derecha Diario
Hermann Tertsch is a Distinguished Fellow at the Gold Institute for International Strategy, a Washington, D.C. foreign policy and defense think tank.
