Ecumenical Memorial Service for Istanbul Bombings Victims

To commemorate the victims of Saturday's and Thursday's suicide bombings in Istanbul, representatives from the Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities as well as delegates from the Turkish, Israeli, British and U.S. embassies gathered for a memorial service in a synagogue in central Berlin on Friday. During the service, Mordechay Levi, the delegate from the Israeli embassy, accused the German government of leading a "dishonest dialogue" with Muslims. "Whoever denies the clash of civilizations affords oneself a luxury he will have to pay for dearly later on," Levi said. The government's migration commissioner, Marieluise Beck, in turn called for a continuation of the inter-religious dialogue. "Terror is coming closer," she said, adding that Germany had to prepare for tough times ahead. A representative of the Central Council of Jews in Germany said it was an important signal that Muslims, Jews and Christians had gathered in the synagogue to commemorate the victims of the attacks.