#Antonio #Rüdiger #Dont #denigrated #Islamist
Published28. March 2024, 2:00 p.m
After criticism: “Don’t let me be denigrated as an Islamist” – DFB star defends himself
After an Instagram post about Ramadan, Germany star Rüdiger feels slandered. He and the DFB are taking legal action against a journalist. Now he explains himself.
-
Antonio Rüdiger is criticized.
-
Germany’s football star was labeled an Islamist.
-
Now he defends himself in a long statement.
Germany, group opponent of the Nati at the European Championships in the summer, is at a high. Most recently there were two friendly wins against France and the Netherlands. Nevertheless, there is turmoil – especially around one football star: Antonio Rüdiger. After his much-discussed Instagram post at the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, the 31-year-old “decisively distanced himself from any kind of extremism and accusations of Islamism”.
The “Bild” newspaper published a comprehensive statement from the Real Madrid professional on Wednesday evening, who commented for the first time on the photo that he had already published on his account on March 11th. In the post, the practicing Muslim posted a photo of himself in a white robe on a prayer mat. The index finger of his right hand points to the sky. “May the Almighty accept our fasting and our prayers,” wrote Rüdiger as a greeting to Ramadan.
Criminal complaint filed
Now he explained in writing: “The gesture I used is the so-called tawheed finger. In Islam, this is considered a symbol of the unity and uniqueness of God. The gesture is widespread among Muslims all over the world and has only been classified as unproblematic by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in the last few days.
In the last few days, the photo had been “used by individuals to make unfounded accusations,” the professional wrote. He was playing with that
also referred to the journalist Julian Reichelt, the former editor-in-chief of Germany’s largest tabloid “Bild”.
In the opinion of Reichelt, who now works at the “Nius” portal, Rüdiger made an Islamist gesture by raising his index finger. Reichelt’s criticism led to Rüdiger filing a criminal complaint against him with the Berlin public prosecutor’s office, and the German Football Association (DFB) also reported the matter to the Central Office for Combating Internet Crime (ZIT) of the Frankfurt/Main Public Prosecutor’s Office.
«Violence and terrorism are absolutely unacceptable. I stand for peace and tolerance,” wrote Rüdiger: “Respect and tolerance are fundamental principles that we all represent in our family.”
“This is about creating an atmosphere”
But he also recognizes that “due to insufficient attention, I have given third parties the opportunity to deliberately misinterpret my posting in order to divide and polarize,” emphasized Rüdiger: “But I will not offer a platform for division and radicalization, so I have “I decided to make a clear statement after our two successful international matches.”
He doesn’t allow himself to be “denigrated as an Islamist” and is therefore taking legal action: “This is about creating an atmosphere and dividing people; I will always resolutely defend myself against this.”
Are you already following 20 minutes of sports on Whatsapp?
Stay informed about the sports world and subscribe to the Whatsapp channel 20 Minutes Sport: Then you will receive regular updates with our best sports stories directly to your cell phone.
(DPA/NIH)
