The court acquitted the German coronavirus denier of the charge of incitement due to Israeli statements

BERLIN — A prominent critic of Germany’s pandemic restrictions, who repeatedly spread false information about the coronavirus, has been cleared of inciting hatred over comments about Jews and Israel.

The regional court in the northern city of Ploen ruled on Tuesday that Thai-German microbiologist Sucharit Bhakdi did not break the law when he described Israel as worse than Nazi Germany.

In a video posted online in 2021, Bhakdi also said that “the terrible thing about Jews is that they are well educated” and called the country of Israel a “living hell”.

The court concluded that it could not be established beyond a reasonable doubt that Bhakdi was spreading anti-Semitic hatred of Jews rather than criticizing the Israeli government and its policies, German news agency dpa reported.

Prosecutors argued that such comments could lead to Jews in Germany becoming targets of hatred.

The judges also said that Bhakdi’s claims that the COVID vaccine is part of a second holocaust do not amount to downplaying the Nazi genocide that killed 6 million Jews, public broadcaster NDR reported.

Bhakdi, who was greeted by dozens of supporters when he arrived in court, could have been fined if convicted.

The verdict can be appealed.