German officials probe alleged vote fraud in Jewish election

BERLIN – German prosecutors have opened an investigation into allegations of vote-rigging in an election for Berlin’s Jewish community parliament.

A spokesman for the prosecutor’s office, Martin Steltner, said they are looking into alleged forging of documents in connection with the 2011 election.

Opposition members within the Jewish community have alleged for years that the top leadership was involved in voting fraud — something the leadership has denied.

Ilan Kiesling, a spokesman for community head Gideon Joffe, denied the new allegations on Wednesday.

Earlier this month, the Central Council of Jews in Germany advised members of Berlin’s community parliament to suspend their functions until clarity had been reached regarding the accusations.

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