there is a year. 30 years after the fall of this wall that separated friends and family from each other this remaining piece of the berlin wall has come to symbolize a new cosmopolitan berlin of unity. up next a day documentary on butlins new synagogue don't forget you can get all the latest news from our website d.w. dot com thanks for watching. it's all happening which a bit of. your link to news from africa the world your link to exceptional stories and discussions if anyone was going to feed of you specifically programs night from foreign to me clooney was easy to watch with safety deputed smash africa join us on facebook to w. africa.

it was once the largest and most magnificent synagogue in germany. a palace of faith a temple of understanding. beneath its gilded dome fragments of the past desecrated torah scrolls mysterious inscriptions. and charred remnants of darker times. the noir synagogue or new synagogue in the heart of berlin paris testimony to a bygone era. the shimmering dome is visible for miles around the synagogue on iranian border schussler is a magnet for tourists a landmark and a solemn reminder. built as a house of worship more than 150 years ago it's a jewel of the city. yet it. almost lost on november 1938

kristallnacht the night of broken glass when thousands of synagogues across germany were set ablaze. to mourn as on his way home near the station he sees the facade and the synagogue and claims. the administrative director of the preacher hospital rushes back to work. his hospital is directly next to the synagogue asa sure enough here to starting a fire. calls the police and threatens to sue the flames our media. and it's pretty sick police chief. as it takes only for a 2nd event springs into action. and. he hurried to the synagogue brandishing a gun it said he singlehandedly pushed a officers and the jury. and had the flames extinguished. from precinct number

16 prevented the synagogue's destruction and unexpectedly became the sole hero of this story but there were others. this is. for precinct 16 did indeed launch the emergency operation and 200 members it was a unique precinct in that most of us officers had been transferred there as a punitive measure before 933 they'd been affiliated with the social democratic party these were officers who were opposed to the nazis and could serve as was their boss but he couldn't have done it without his men. survive the pogrom night with burn marks but still standing. in the rotunda of the now restored entrance we meet conservationist robert gray fraught and the founding director of the new synagogue foundation.

the exact sequence of events that night is still unknown what is clear is that essay troops ran riot in the synagogue pushing over prayer benches urinating on torah smashing windows but when there's an infant over there the pains have all been reinstalled with legs what's left of them and here it's glued into place. fragments of the past with tales to tell. for decades the image of the iranian synagogue in flames was emblematic of the november programme. is in fact that's not quite true many synagogues were set on fire this one here on iranian burgers toss it to these especially this photo here which became symbolic for the burning synagogues in november 1038 is fake it was retouched in the early post-war years and.

the search for us senate relics of the past leads to the cellar and the store rooms that house forgotten treasures. such as unmarked film. along with other things they also tell of the life of jewish people in central berlin not far from the iranian burger strawson this was the so-called shrine in futile or burned district home to eastern european jews who fled here in the late 1900 century. near alexander plots. they were marginalized community. with moments of distinct pride. and small prayer rooms tucked away behind in conspicuous doors.

these kind of lovers relief and porcelain figures belonged to the iranian burger stross a synagogue. in november 943 bombs dropped in a british air raid cause severe damage not just to the dome what had been germany's largest synagogue was critically hit. 15 years later authorities of communist east germany had the main synagogue in central prayer room the very heart of the structure demolished. to this day only an outline in the void recalls the beauty last. summer between 57 acclaimed architect had watched no plough is that his wits and

for years he's been discussing plans for the new synagogue the jewish community the old one is too small but how do they expect him to align the prayer halls toward jerusalem on this crooked plot of land and why not design it in the fashionable morris style. germany's jewish community wants a magnificent building but it's also wary of provoking resentment. how can square the circle. at that time berlin was booming and the jewish community too was flourishing. in the mid 1900 century 28000 lived in the pression capital alone where they felt welcomed by king free to feel from the 4th. and so construction for a splendid new synagogue was soon underway. the new synagogue was built at a time when jewish people were becoming german citizens. i'm game industry and box to china they took part in the city's economic growth and started questioning their

identity as they told us to themselves. as it happens a palace of liberality passed out. behind the tent. the new synagogue was consecrated on september 5th $866.00 to widespread acclaim among those impressed was also fun bismarck the pression prime minister and leader 1st chancellor of the german empire. but the polish will building divided the community orthodox jews were appalled calling it a theater not a house for quiet worship. many liberal minded jews on the other hand believed german jews should design buildings in the german fashion. either way the construction that was both adored and accord was forever lost now it's once again made visible in this virtual reconstruction.

the synagogue stoked contempt among anti semites. how dare they one of them the historian heinrich from try to complain to his wife. the biggest and most impressive church in the german capital is a synagogue i mean this is not reproach of the jews but of the christians. in $886.00 the synagogue was a clear statement the jewish community was part of germany. above the entrance in

hebrew the biblical quotation. the gates of the righteous nation which keep the truth might enter in. to preserve jewish identity and foster openness that was the founders vision. isn't simply the sentiment was here in the center of berlin we have an open mind we don't just practice tolerance in the streets in the synagogue we ourselves represent this openness so it was an expression of confidence we're right in the middle of things we're part of you we are berliners he's a billionaire. today berlin's jewish community would also want the building to appear welcoming it's a major tourist attraction. but security gates and police protection reveal how fragile this openness is. as the siege of the center of judea come foundation it's a place of remember in a museum and a research institute. and it bears witness to the synagogues beginnings.

but in 1900 the synagogue was a lively center of jewish religious life a popular place to celebrate weddings or bar mitzvahs and drawing thousands of worshippers to services on religious holidays. tourists also came to admire it among them the writers. lewis carroll and mark twain. concerts were always sold out like this one on a rediscovered recording of the synagogue choir from 1932.

the synagogue was a special place to root of engelmann she lived on the outskirts of berlin but sometimes her grandfather would take her along to visit the new synagogue. ringback is the stick was i remember my grandparents had rented 2 seats in the synagogue on a run you bush asa d.z. commuted to that that was common practice in the business owners to have reserved seats. so i got to go to the synagogue with my grandparents on certain holidays but dick was it and so it was always a special occasion when our grandparents took one of the grandchildren along buttons 1st visit and my grandfather would say i'm only taking root with me because as he was out and he would you would admit.

i was was. after the nazis seized power of the synagogue increasingly became a place for billions jewish population to withdraw and find refuge on an island of normalcy. here it was as if things had stayed the same. the seeding order during services was still strictly regulated to. 'd the synagogue was a spiritual religious and cultural anchor with well attended concerts and memorial services for jewish soldiers who had fallen in the 1st world war. in 1933 berlin was home to more than 160000 jews across germany they numbered over

half a 1000000. most hoped the worst would soon pass that the nazis were only acting out in their 1st flush of victory. people sat in cafes enjoying the sun and the economic upswing. but this situation deteriorated rapidly. in 1935 as the discriminatory nuremberg laws were passed. jewish citizens and those who stood by them now faced systematic exclusion even in berlin. stopping but he knew there had been several attempts to instigate a parliament berlin they were all plotted by the rabbit anti-semite berlin's regional leader or. gervase gifty who was also the propaganda minister he was

a. condom minister falling apart they were borne by the fact that gurgles was bothered by the fact that the number of jewish businesses in berlin hadn't dropped significantly in the movie needs looking in smaller communities many jewish businesses have been forced to shut down in 10333435 i think the from the answer len they were able to survive a lot longer there was even an influx of new trades people from the smaller communities because the capital was thought to be a safe haven mine not that he. shoots so high sunshine. but it wasn't in the early summer of 1938 goebbels redoubled his efforts. at the ministry of propaganda he held a speech for 300 police officers afterwards he noted in his diary i really heated things up got them to forget all sentimentality the jews must be driven out of berlin. a wave of violence against jews followed. it lasted until

june 24th 1938 then suddenly it stopped on hitler's orders. planning to annex parts of czechoslovakia he needed to deflect international outrage against germany but the goal to drive the jews out of the country remained . in october 19th 38 the nazis arrested and deported 17000 jews with polish troops to the polish border. among them the relatives of hershel greenspun. on november 7th in paris 17 year old grange gun shot the german legation counselor s. from riot dead at close range the assassination gave goebbels the perfect excuse to orchestrate spontaneous revenge in his diary he wrote rubble in all major cities the synagogues are in flames a raging fury this murder will cost the jews dearly in berlin $51015.00 synagogues

have burned down the whole nation is an uproar. finkleman was 10 years old at the time on the morning of november 10th she was making her way from her home in the suburbs to the jewish school for girls in central berlin. didn't but that incompetence that you may have tika well and things grew worse the further we made our way into the city. and garden schlosser we saw it as a man flogging a small jewish businessman. remarking the star of david on his black coat. of course it was worrying but i wasn't afraid i was right by my dad he says and he my party. when they arrived at her school and right next to the synagogue all seemed peaceful. her

father was relieved. they think i know an issue and didn't try and i went inside but we were immediately met by our principal so 9 he told us not to go to our classrooms but straight to the auditorium for the hosea shy and suddenly we heard shouting and a terrible uproar then n.s.a. and s.s. barricaded the entrances to the school and. we were trapped inside the. vehicle and our principal said now we're going to do something new no it has never prayed in my school it's just not something we have or did that on that day we all sat together when we do great harm but let's. get the end the children were sent up to the attic. it was connected by a passageway to the neighboring building the escaped without side they witnessed

devastation and chaos on the streets across the country the program resulted in 7 and a half 1000 jewish owned businesses ransacked 30000 jews arrested 1300 murdered or dead by their own hand. in april 1939 the synagogue an iranian burger stross a reopened for passover. traces of the fire were still visible when rabbi marc walked in. my heart was racing i wasn't just entering a desecrated house of god in the middle of a european capital i was stepping into the history of 2000 years of paul graham's an arson attacks. i was almost overcome with emotion. from total despair to raging to fire. but above the shrine we spotted a miracle. the new tommy the flame of the eternal life was still burning. as it

shone through november nights and tents and all the months after it was an unforgettable sight a symbol and a message and 1. 5 months later world war 2 erupted. in september. on jewish new year and september 939 the order came to paint over all of the domes while services were still being held inside in fact i feel like my father i believe was here and told me all about it later. be. the synagogues killed domes were painted over there was no glimmer in the darkness . the night turned black. the.

end inside the rezone did for the last time in the final service on march 30th 1940. then the synagogue was shut down. the german army moved in using the main hall as a warehouse to store their marked uniforms. religious services were still held in secret next door. the last one took place even as outside the nazis were accelerating the deportation of jews. may 1st 1903 a special day for. 13 years old and is celebrating his bar mitzvah the jewish coming of age ritual for boys to. his mother and the rabbi have gathered in the

cellar of the honey and toss the number 31 the ceremony must be brief and secret vianna and his mother have been living underground for months. 'd 'd 'd the prayer book the sea do or the van or mops received for his bar mitzvah survived. it still bears the rabbi's dedication. for decades there was no knowledge of what went on next door to the synagogue then during renovation construction workers found inscriptions underneath the wallpaper in a storage room. in the autumn of 1943 the gestapo had created prison cells for $200.00 inmates in these rooms. the inscriptions had been scratched into the wall by prisoners fearfully awaiting their interrogation.

the 17 year old jewish girl jenny label was among those turned here. to serve forced labor she was arrested in berlin in september of 1904 on sabotage charges she was thrown into a small cell with $23.00 inmates decades later she described the conditions with. the cruelest of all where the s.s. women when we were brought to an interrogation they had to pass through a doorway blocked by a heavy bar madam sergeant miller's favorite thing to do is to lift the bar and then let it crash down over us as we passed while we were nearly passing out in pain she would just sit there laughing. if the prisoners screamed no one could hear them here in the former storage rooms of the jewish museum. up until november 1938 the jewish museum next to the synagogue had exhibited hundreds of paintings drawings and sculptures and

thousands of photographs rare manuscripts and ritual objects. but on november 10th the museum was sealed off a guard was placed outside the valuable collection disappeared for years. it included the works by monks lieberman after the war an operation was launched to locate the works some have still not been found. you're. here in the old ronnie and bush crossed a synagogue there was nothing left in the cellar as far as we know. at least as far as the paintings are concerned. later a bust of moses mendelssohn resurfaced. but the holdings of the berlin jewish museum were gone was the ohms volley had been seized in 1940 s. xit. a part of the collection

reappeared in 1946 in the cellar of the former rice culture chamber in berlin. 300 paintings and drawings were found here left to the elements under an open window. among them moxley berman's final self-portrait. the artist had gifted it to the jewish museum when it opened in january 1933 just a few days before the nazis seized power. all of the large paintings remain lost all but one the prophet by yakob steinhart is said to have hung in google's villa outside berlin. the works of lesser henri also vanished all that remains in the store rooms of the centrum today it is this small oil painting glued to

a cigar box. the exhibit also shows this portrait intitled a german woman. the back reveals it was painted presumably by a german very much soldier on parchment from a handwritten torah scroll. long forgotten personal histories can be explored down in the archives of the central judaism family stories like harry shell and. he was a close friend of marcus lieberman's widow it was to him that marta lieberman wrote her last letter before taking her life at the age of 85 to escape deportation. hundreds of family heirlooms. we found in the largest archive of jewish life in germany thousands of tragic for.

many files date from the pre-war general archive of the german jews which compiled material from jewish communities and institutions across the country for the nazis it was a treasure trove. in 1939 they minded to establish the central office for jewish registers of births deaths and marriages. the administration of the jewish community in berlin was forced to use these registers to assemble deportation lists until they themselves were targeted. we have a file in the archive of the centrum today i think it's called the dismantling operation of october 20th 1902. it's a good example for the entire tragedy of the situation that are. still greatly moved by the fact that we are right now in the very room in which all this happened

. and. oct 19th 1902 more hits henschel chairman of the jewish community is summoned by the secret state police. as so often whenever he is ordered to the offices of the gestapo he leaves behind his watch and wedding ring a silent code that signals danger to his colleagues but he returns with very precise instructions. the next morning on command of the gestapo more intentional orders more than a 1000 jewish community employees to the corridors and the large hall of the synagogue. the departmental directors are told to select $500.00 employees for deportation.

silence. minutes pass and not a single name is uttered. frustrated because officers put together their own lists . and they issue a threat for every individual who doesn't show up 2 days later the collection center a leading member of the jewish community will be shot. 20 failed to show 20 others are executed. and the. way. it's a really dreadful story. and i often think not only of the victims and their families. but also of those who were responsible for this outcome. in hindsight we can always say why didn't they do this or that one had to go and so

we have all kinds of clever ideas. but those who bore the responsibility simply couldn't live up to it call these a photo and if they. 2 2 would have income on her sister and their father were also in danger of being deported. nazi race laws classify the girls as 1st degree mixed race their father was jewish their mother protestant and therefore arion. in march 1903 the 2 girls received a summons from the gestapo. they were ordered to the collection center at gross a hamburger strawson just 500 metres from the synagogue. their mother was told to wait outside but she refused to leave her girls and appeared with them in front of a stop officer. that's after some witty person seed and he asked my mother what is

your blood doll and she says i'm area and your children my children are 1st degree mixed race so he told us to wait belton in the event a moment a woman kelemen with her 3 children a boy in a hitler youth uniform people i meet girl with a star of david on her coat and b.b. off an arm and a baby in diapers that couldn't be identified because it does after he says what's going on here what is this and she answered the eldest is from my 1st marriage was the 2nd is from my 2nd marriage and the little one it's too. late and he said what a mess that's this get this riffraff out of my sight he always smitty me is oxy here. the officer threw out the riffraff. that saved their lives for the time being. father was deported. she received 3

letters from him and one final postcard. leaving me good to school would be good as always my dears i am well how are you your parcel with bread and cake and tobacco has arrive to thank you so much that was very nice otherwise there is nothing new best wishes to your mom love and kisses from your dad it. includes so heidi especially let's than those were the last words i ever heard. from my dad. her father was murdered in auschwitz in january 1944. her little sister and their mother went into hiding in a shed on an allotment garden in southern berlin of their once a large family only 5 survived the holocaust 5 out of $25.00.

at the end of the war berlin lay in ruins. nothing was left of the diversity of the former jewish quarter the synagogue so prominent again today was merely a shadow in the post-war years ignored forgotten. the jewish people who had survived the war and managed to stay in hiding in berlin had other worries existential concerns. they flocked to the administrative offices of berlin's jewish community next to the ruins of the synagogue to register. when raptor berlin's liberation oranienburg very quickly became a contact point for jewish survivors and berlin these people came to register and fill out forms these forms were used to compile the lists with the roman numerals

12 and 3 the lists of those who had survived on the lady list and there are. among the nearly 7000 jews who had managed to stay in berlin was very comes on his bar mitzvah was the last religious rite celebrated at the synagogue in 1903 he'd gone into hiding now he applied for official recognition as a victim of fascism. located in the soviet sector the synagogue was a crumbling ruin. there was little to recall its glory days when it was a proud expression of germany's jewish population.

in 1958 east germany's communist authorities demolished the main hall of the synagogue seen here in the virtual reconstruction. it was a simpler and cheaper solution than preserving the building. but was it also a political decision when mom and poor d.t. home had they been trying to send a political message they certainly would have demolished the front part of the which was so to speak. for they didn't do that that's a demolish the back section home fish point. precisely 100 years after the synagogues consecration in september 1966 a small crowd gathered outside its ruins. jewish community leaders accompanied by a few communist party functionaries unveiled a small commemorative plaque the front of this house of god shall remain a place of remembrance and a warning for all time never forget these and putting on suffering fixing that plaque was

a stroke of genius and my eyes there were fears that the rest of the building would be demolished the city and my so community leaders moved to avert that by putting up a plaque and it's not so weak. you tear down a building once there is a plaque on a mission i have a bias. it was a bold move casting the synagogue as a memorial against fascism. hair monday morning and conservationist robert graves right joined efforts to restore the synagogue in the late 1970 s. for years there was debate over whether it should be rebuilt and if so how. great fright couldn't believe some official suggestions. so there are people in the park section of the urban planning department designing gardens for this open space . mission. instead of morrish gardens pillars recall the site of the apps where the tour ark once stood and an open void lays

bare the scars of history. reconstruction of the synagogue began in the late 1980 s. under the patronage of east germany's communist leader eric hanukah it was a step of rapprochement with israel and the united states after years of isolation the soviet satellite was demonstrating tolerance toward jews in east germany. hoped it would earn him international praise and an invitation to the white house. jewish community began looking for a rabbi the american jewish community suggested a candidate for the east german leadership welcomed the proposal. the rabbi's arrival in the fall of 1987 was a media spectacle. i don't think you know a man had expected such a huge reception or was even cut out for it. time.

he was a rabbi in some small american town. and now he was a rabbi in berlin. and on top of that behind the iron curtain it was all a bit much because she'd feel. from illinois to east berlin norman addressed the media in his newly built apartment in east berlin. he looked forward to his life in this very different world. i have everything i need friends and members of the community have made sure that i feel at home here. 'd a survivor of norman was on a mission he wanted to help resurrect jewish life in east germany. his lectures drew large crowds especially young people among them was for greenstein a lecturer at humboldt university and daughter of

a former deputy interior minister. she met the new rabbi at oranienburg. constitute as he said and then. came right over i didn't know anything about real life rabbis you know i only had this image in my head gleaned from rabbis in the books of bob and he wasn't like them at all in. this. would have. this is you know he was captivated by the rabbi and his charisma he taught and others like her what it meant to be jewish. and he was political. clinician one day said out loud in one of his sermons that it couldn't be that only

people in the west have been nazis while people in the east knew nothing about anti semitism or nazis suddenly he was in trouble. also published in. the east german secret service began watching him they had a suspicion. going on as a cia operative who had been employed on a u.s. air force base until his appointment as rabbi. with his liberal views the rabbi irritated jewish community leaders their differences were irreconcilable and lead to increasing arguments after just 8 months no man left east germany. if a green shrine wanted to go with him it was a perfect scandal the daughter of a former deputy interior minister turning her back on her communist homeland for months authorities stonewalled her application to leave until she turned to honaker himself. then finally she was allowed to go.

6 months after her departure construction to restore the synagogue began. a symbolic cornerstone ceremony was held on november 10th 19881 year later the berlin wall fell october 990 saw the roofing ceremony of the 50 metre high gilded dome. shining brightly again it broadcast a message to the world jewish life was returning to germany's reunited capital. after 7 years of construction the new synagogue was consecrated as the center of judaism in 1905 hosting exhibitions on the past and present of jewish life in berlin see common i'm you know home to visitors enter a place to for a member and see a memorial a museum just impulses from and some are surprised maybe even disappointed and

they come expecting to find a synagogue in the normal sense of a place of worship can reflect. and that isn't here anymore here. today was its archives and library at the center of judaic i'm is a q.b. research and conference center and it remains a meeting place for the jewish community. every friday religious services are held in a small prayer room for 50 worshippers with a rabbi and cantor. once again bar mitzvahs are celebrated here as jewish boys become sons of the commencement. more than 150 years ago berlin jewish community embarked on a new chapter opening the new synagogue as a temple of understanding its rise its fall its rebirth

a lasting tribute to german jewish history. repeated beginning to continue battleforce b.m.v. of west and east germany. after the fall of the wall. how competitive are the 2 economic reach what about salaries and of course the residents. what happens when everything changes. made in germany. d w. into the conflict zone with jim sebastian is on kong's

pro-democracy movement imagine if it has the qualified support of the international community it is better think again by. this week here in berlin it is joey sue a pro-democracy activist movement now tried to make a deal with the hong kong government before that becomes impossible conflict so for him 90 minutes on d w. their wealth isn't calculable. their egos in synch with. their rivalry 10 to. 3 princes. who dream of leading the arab world.

their hunger for power and boundless ambition have touched the middle east into a grave crisis. the rival princes of the gulf starts nov 27th on d w. this is d w news these are our top stories. chile's president says he's asked parliament to raise the minimum wage by around 15 percent is also promised to investigate human rights abuses by police as he tries to quell the country's worst unrest in decades truckers blockaded highways to protest against road tolls and demonstrators have again filled the streets of the chilean capital. one person has been killed.