Berlin woman attacked with broken glass bottle after wearing Star of David necklace, police say

A 43-year-old Berlin woman was targeted in an alleged antisemitic assault on Thursday night, police confirmed. Two unidentified men noticed the Star of David necklace she wore and proceeded to hurl antisemitic slurs at her before one of them attacked her with a broken glass bottle. The woman sustained cuts to her hand as the suspects fled the scene on Torstrasse in central Berlin's Mitte district.

Emergency medical personnel attended to the victim on the spot before transporting her to a hospital for further treatment. The police have not disclosed the woman's current condition or provided a description of the perpetrators. The case has been handed over to Berlin's State Security Division, which deals with political, extremist, and antisemitic offenses.

Antisemitic incidents in Berlin have been on the rise, with 2,268 recorded in 2025, marking a 24.3% increase from the previous year. Of these, 64 were classified as violent offenses. In June, a similar incident occurred when a 47-year-old man wearing a kippah was attacked in Charlottenburg, with suspects hurling antisemitic insults, spitting, and striking him. Both cases have been transferred to the State Security Division for investigation.

According to the Berlin public prosecutor's office, 820 proceedings with an antisemitic background were opened in 2025, compared to 756 in 2024. The prosecutor's representative responsible for combating antisemitism expressed concern over the high number of incidents, stating that such attacks not only harm the direct victims but also undermine the security of Berlin's Jewish community.