Odeh’s planned appearance had triggered a storm of protest among Jewish and political leaders. The Central Council of Jews in Germany had issued a statement condemning the invitation to Odeh.
Council president Josef Schuster told the Taz newspaper in Berlin that he was “appalled that a convicted Palestinian terrorist who killed and injured Israelis is permitted to appear in Berlin.”The public appearance of someone sentenced for murder, terrorism and immigration fraud “legitimizes anti-Semitism at a time when we should be condemning it,” U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell said in an interview with Fox News.
Also weighing in against Odeh’s appearance were Berlin’s mayor, Michael Müller, and Hellmut Königshaus, head of the German-Israel Society.
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