A 19-year-old Syrian national was found guilty of serious bodily harm and abuse by a German court on Monday after he had attacked an Arab-Israeli man wearing a skullcap in Berlin.
The court handed the 19-year-old a four-week jail sentence, which he has already served during his pretrial detention.
The Syrian national, who was tried as a juvenile, is also to be placed under special supervision by carers.
The man had used a belt to attack a 21-year-old Arab-Israeli wearing a kippa on April 17, shouting the Arabic word for Jew, “Yahudi.”
Another man filmed the incident on his phone.
The 21-year-old man who was attacked is not Jewish. Appearing as a witness, he told the court that he had worn the skullcap as he was on the way to visit an acquaintance with Jewish heritage.
The defendant has been in pretrial detention since April 19, after being quickly identified by police.
Last week, he admitted attacking the 21-year-old and said he was sorry for his actions.
“I am very sorry, it was a mistake on my part,” the defendant told the court in German. “I didn’t want to hit him, I just wanted to scare him.”
He also said that he had taken drugs before the incident, saying: “I got stoned, my head was tired.”
The skullcap at the centre of the attack, which sparked a backlash campaign against antisemitism, was later placed on display in Berlin’s Jewish Museum as part of an exhibit.
