, , , ,

Success for CAA as Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard loses extradition appeal

Vincent Reynouard, a French Holocaust-denier, will be extradited from the UK after his application for leave to appeal was rejected on Friday.

Mr Reynouard, 54, a convicted Holocaust-denier, was awaiting a decision from the court on the appeal after a court in Scotland granted an extradition request from France. Mr Reynouard was a fugitive in the UK who was caught following appeals from Campaign Against Antisemitism.

His extradition hearing followed several preliminary hearings and false starts to allow time for the content of videos, which were alleged to have been made by Mr Reynouard, to be translated into English, as well as other delays due to ill health on his legal team.

Mr Reynouard continued to post updates on his far-right blog, Sans Concession, despite being incarcerated as he awaited his extradition hearing.

The extradition request was granted after the court considered that the postings for which Mr Reynouard was found guilty in France would also be crimes in the UK under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003.

In a different case in 2018, Campaign Against Antisemitism secured a legal precedent that Holocaust-denial is “grossly offensive” and therefore illegal when used as a means by which to hound Jews. When it is delivered via a medium of communication, it can fall within the purview of the Communications Act. That English precedent has effectively been replicated in Scottish law in this case now as well.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced  to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

In November 2022, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice.

Scottish police arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused to consent to his extradition to France.

Early last year, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where he was served with a second arrest warrant, as the French authorities had allegedly made an error in their application for the initial arrest warrant. Paul Dunne, Mr Reynouard’s lawyer, said of Mr Reynouard: “He does not consent to his extradition to France.”

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings. It is possible that his time in prison in the UK may reduce the length of his custodial sentence in France.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust-denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement.

“We are delighted that those efforts have borne fruit, with the court granting the request to extradite Mr Reynouard, and refusing his application for permission to appeal, so that he can face justice in France. This is not only the right judgement for the Jewish community, but also for the justice system. The UK cannot become a haven for those seeking to evade justice elsewhere. For antisemites in particular, the message is clear: you are not welcome in Britain. Good riddance, Mr Reynouard.”

, , , , ,

Success for CAA as Scottish court grants extradition for Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard

A court in Scotland has granted an extradition request for the convicted Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard, a French fugitive in the UK who was caught following appeals from Campaign Against Antisemitism.

Mr Reynouard, 54, appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today for his extradition hearing, which followed several preliminary hearings and false starts over the past year, to allow time for the content of videos, alleged to have been made by Mr Reynouard, to be translated into English, as well as other delays due to ill health on his legal team.

Mr Reynouard continued to post updates on his far-right blog, Sans Concession, despite being incarcerated as he awaited his extradition hearing.

Today, the extradition request has been granted, as the court considered that the postings for which Mr Reynouard was found guilty in France would also be crimes in the UK under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003.

In a different case in 2018, Campaign Against Antisemitism secured a legal precedent that Holocaust-denial is “grossly offensive” and therefore illegal when used as a means by which to hound Jews. When it is delivered via a medium of communication, it can fall within the purview of the Communications Act. That English precedent has now been replicated in Scottish law today as well.

He will be extradited within ten days of the seven-day period in which he can appeal.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

In November last year, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice.

Scottish police arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France.

Earlier this year, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where he was served with a second arrest warrant, as the French authorities had allegedly made an error in their application for the initial arrest warrant. Paul Dunne, Mr Reynouard’s lawyer, said of Mr Reynouard: “He does not consent to his extradition to France.”

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust-denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement.

“We are delighted that those efforts have borne fruit today, with the court granting the request to extradite Mr Reynouard so that he can face justice in France. This is not only the right judgement for the Jewish community, but also for the justice system. The UK cannot become a haven for those seeking to evade justice elsewhere. For antisemites in particular, the message is clear: you are not welcome in Britain. Good riddance, Mr Reynouard.”

,

Royal Spanish Academy defines Jew as “a person being greedy”

The Royal Spanish Academy has included inflammatory definitions of the words “Jew” and “Jewish” in its official dictionary. 

The Dictionary of the Spanish Language, which is published by the Royal Spanish Academy, currently defines the term, “Jew” as “in relation to a person being greedy or money lending” in one of its given definitions. 

The notion of Jewish greed is a classic antisemitic trope, with its origins in the supposed betrayal of Jesus by Judas for money, and in the professional limitations on Jews in mediaeval Europe, which forced many to work as money-lenders because of antisemitic restrictions.

Under the term, “Jewish”, one of the definitions reads, “a dirty trick or an action that is detrimental to someone”. It is noted in the entry that the word was previously used with “antisemitic intent”. 

Some twenty Jewish groups that represent Spanish-speaking communities have written a joint letter to the Royal Spanish Academy to ask that it use more “respectful and inclusive language”.

The letter observes: “The definitions of the words Judío [Jew] and Judiada [Jewish] in no way reflect the true meaning of these terms.” 

The letter continues with an explanation that the definitions of the words are “the product of a mediaeval and renaissance terminology of rejection, envy and hatred directed at Jews who, because of their work, had the highest incomes – which was one of the factors that led to their expulsion from Spain by the Catholic monarchs.”

Boja Luján Lago, a lawyer who represents the organisations that signed the letter, said: “Dictionaries have the task of reflecting the use and evolution of language, and their content is based on linguistic and academic criteria.

“In a context in which Spanish and Ibero-American society is increasingly sensitive to diverse identities and that the lack of respect to defining groups is mostly rejected by our society, we believe that these meanings should be updated to correctly reflect the use of the language in our days.”

The Royal Spanish Academy has confirmed receipt of the letter and is looking into the request. 

This is not the first time that an inflammatory definition has been found for the word, “Jew”. Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to Google after it was discovered it defined the word as a verb, to “bargain with someone in a miserly or petty way”. Google subsequently removed and corrected the definition.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Finnish government to criminalise Holocaust-denial

The Finnish government has announced its intention to criminalise Holocaust-denial.

The move comes as part of a wider commitment by the Government to “promote equality and gender equality in practice”.

In a statement, the Government said: “Acts motivated by hate against Jews, Muslims, Christians and other religious groups will be prevented and Holocaust-denial will be criminalised. The possibility of criminalising the use of at least Nazi and communist symbols to promote ideology will be investigated.”

Finland’s Prime Minister, Petteri Orpo, said: “There is no room for racism in Finland. Political decision-makers must set an example in building a safe and equal society, and we need all of society to take part.”

In July, Vilhelm Junnila, a far-right Finnish minister resigned just days after taking office amid a number of controversies over his past comments. Mr Junnila was reported to have joked about being assigned the number 88 by the Finnish Election Commission as his candidate number in the 2019 Parliamentary election. The number 88 refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is used by neo-Nazis as a code for “Heil Hitler”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

, , ,

Artist with inflammatory social media history exhibits art in London gallery

An artist with a history of inflammatory social media posts about Jews is once again exhibiting her work in London.

Anna Laurini is currently showing her art at the Fitzrovia Gallery, having also exhibited elsewhere in London in 2022.

The Italian painter has a history of sharing inflammatory conspiracy theories about Jews on social media.

In one Instagram post, for example, a figure, which appears to be Ms Laurini, poses on a rooftop with the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City in the background. The caption reads “Imagine a world without #Israhell”, a reference to the conspiracy theory that Israel was responsible for the terrorist attacks on New York City on 11th September 2001.

In a Facebook post, Ms Laurini appears to have shared an article apparently from the publication, Palestine Voice, which seems to have featured Ms Laurini in a 2020 edition. Ms Laurini captioned the post with the words “From the river to the sea”, part of the slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. This chant only makes sense as a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a State of Palestine — and is thus an attempt to deny Jews, uniquely, the right to self-determination, which is a breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism.

Another online post apparently shared by Ms Laurini features a black and white image of the gates to what looks like a Nazi concentration camp, but replaces the infamous words above the entrance gate, “Arbeit macht Frei” (“Work sets you free”), with the words “Green pass macht Frei”, which compares COVID-19 restrictions to Nazi ideology.

Ms Laurini appears to have repeated the sentiment in this post in another, which features a version of the flag of Nazi Germany. In this instance, the post shows the flag with a green background and the words “green pass”, again apparently comparing Nazism and anti-coronavirus measures put in place by European governments.

Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.

Additionally, Ms Laurini appears to have retweeted a post that features the image of Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, who is Jewish, with captions that seem to suggest that the Rothschild family are responsible for a conspiracy that involves the “geo-engineering” of the weather and its “rebranding” as climate change, which allegedly leads to the erosion of democratic freedoms around the world.

The Rothschilds appear in many anti-Jewish conspiracy theories as a sinister, controlling force.

In a further post, she also reportedly appeared to link the Rothschild family to the 9/11 attacks, alleging that the Israeli shipping company, Zim, “broke [a] lease it had held for 30 years and moved out of the World Trade Center.” She continued: “Zim is half owned by the Rothschilds.” The notion that the Jews had advance notice of the attack on the World Trade Centre, often purportedly because the Israeli foreign intelligence service, Mossad, was involved in orchestrating the attack, is a popular antisemitic conspiracy.

In another Instagram post, Ms Laurini reportedly shared photos of herself posing with the conspiracy theorist and antisemitic hate preacher, David Icke.

She has also reportedly shared material on Gab, a social-media platform that was founded in 2016 with a claim to “champion free speech,” and has become a haven for supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory and other far-right groups and individuals banned from mainstream platforms.

She reportedly shared a cartoon there that showed a man asking “how are they connected?” as he stands in front of a board on which topics including “pornography”, “banking” and “Hollywood” are connected by string in the shape of the Star of David. The post adds: “If you ignore the JQ you are politically illiterate.” “JQ” is a reference to the “Jewish Question”.

Another post reportedly shared by Ms Laurini described the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as a “billionaire Jew pal of the rich and powerful,” and his convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell as a “rich Jew”.

Asked by the JC about some of these posts, Ms Laurini reportedly said: “I cannot now recall the content of the postings that you claimed I share on social media [sic].” She reportedly added that the account on which those posts appeared “closed down over two years ago” and that the comments “do not represent” her views.

In a statement, the Fitzrovia Gallery told the JC: “We simply hire the gallery space for artists and/or their agents to exhibit. We do not get involved with any of their artwork or selection of it. We are simply a space for hire. We have not ‘arranged’ her show.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

, ,

Man charged with hate crime in connection with alleged assault of Jew in Berlin

A man has been charged with a hate crime after he allegedly assaulted a Jewish man at a subway station.

On Saturday, a Jewish man, who was walking with his son, was first approached by a 61-year-old man, at Storkower Strasse subway station in the Prenzlauer-Berg district of Berlin. The suspect allegedly spoke to the victim in a “disrespectful manner”, before the victim and his son ignored him and continued on their route. 

When they returned to the same station in the afternoon, however, they encountered the same man, who allegedly punched the victim in the neck and said an antisemitic insult. 

Shortly after, the suspect was found by police, who charged him with a hate crime. It is understood that the man was determined to be inebriated at the time of the arrest, following the administration of a breathalyser test. 

Last week, an investigation was announced into a suspected arson attack on a Holocaust street library box in Berlin. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably. 

, ,

German woman fined for antisemitic e-mail to Director of Hanover Opera

A woman in Germany has been fined after she sent an antisemitic e-mail to the Director of the Hanover State Opera. 

The fine of €1,200 (£1022) was issued by the Hanover District Court in relation to a message that was sent to Laura Berman, the Director at the opera house, via an online contact form. 

In the e-mail, the unnamed defendant was alleged to have written a complaint of a performance at the opera house and related this to Ms Berman being Jewish. 

The defendant initially rejected the proceedings against her but then accepted the penalty order, which stipulates that she must pay €40 per day for 30 days. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably. 

,

French journalist fired for antisemitic tweets

A French journalist has been fired from a news outlet following alleged antisemitic social media posts.

Geneva-based reporter Dina Abi-Saab was reportedly fired from France 24, a French state-owned network that broadcasts in French, English, Arabic and Spanish, after her history of antisemitic tweets and messages was revealed.

The posts were first found by the media watchdog, CAMERA.

It is reported that she also refused to sign the company’s ethics charter, which apparently contributed to the termination of her employment.

Ms. Abi-Saab tweeted that “The influx of Western Jews” is the cause of conflict in the Middle East, and referred to the State of Israel as “occupied Palestine”, which is tantamount to refusing to recognise, and therefore endorse the existence of, a Jewish state.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination” is an example of antisemitism.

Ms. Abi-Saab’s inflammatory tweets also included celebrations at rockets being fired at Israel from Gaza and declaring Omar Abu Laila, a terrorist who fatally stabbed IDF Sgt. Gal Keidan and wounded two others, a martyr.

She also allegedly drew comparisons between Israeli bombing of terrorist targets in Gaza and the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre.

This is the second instance in four months of France 24 firing reporters due in connection with alleged antisemitism views.

Joelle Maroun, the channel’s Beirut correspondent, was dismissed in March after a collection of her tweets was exposed. Ms Maroun is claimed to have tweeted: “They asked Hitler, ‘What did you do with the Jews?’ He said, ‘Nothing extraordinary, [just having] barbecue with the guys.” On another occasion, she allegedly tweeted, “Rise, sir Hitler, rise, there are a few people that need to be burned.”

Two other journalists at France 24, Laila Odeh and Sharif Bibi, were also investigated, however they reportedly remain at the news station. Both Ms Odeh and Mr Bibi signed the ethics charter which Ms Abi-Saab declined to sign. 

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

, ,

Holocaust history book box destroyed in suspected arson attack in Berlin

Police in Berlin are investigating a suspected arson attack on a Holocaust street library box.

The library, which is part of a larger communal library project called “Bücherboxx”, is located near the Track 17 memorial at Grunewald train station. 

The memorial commemorates the thousands of Jews who were deported from the station to concentration camps during the Holocaust. 

The Bücherboxx at the memorial contains a volume of books that relate to Holocaust history; members of the public are encouraged to borrow and read the material.

According to German media, witnesses saw a man enter the library and deposit a book before setting it on fire. An antisemitic note was also reportedly discovered at the site.

Last week, it was announced that German authorities were investigating the possibility of an antisemitic motive after an Israeli man was attacked by three men in Berlin. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably. 

,

French party to be dissolved following suggestions that Jews should not be French citizens

Gerald Darmanin, France’s Interior Minister, has asked his Ministry to dissolve Civitas, an ultra-Catholic, far-right political party, following inflammatory remarks about Jews. 

During a seminar last month, Pierre Hillard, one of the party’s members, spoke about the rights of religious minorities in France prior to the French Revolution in 1789, when Jews could not become French citizens as they were considered “heretics”. 

Mr Hillard then said: “Maybe we should go back to how things were before 1789.”

In response to the comments, Mr Darmanin tweeted: “Antisemitism has no place in our country…I have asked my services to instruct the dissolution of Civitas.” 

Civitas was originally formed as an organisation in 1999 until it achieved political party status in 2016. According to its website, Civitas “revolves around three fundamental pillars of prayer, training and action”. 

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

German man who said “Jews went to the slaughter like sheep” accused of pretending to be Jewish 

A German man who has allegedly used antisemitic tropes in public talks has been accused of pretending to be Jewish. 

Frank Borner, a retired teacher from the island of Fehmarn, has claimed to be working through the “Meet a Jew” programme. “Meet a Jew” is an initiative run by the Central Council of Jews in Germany whereby non-Jews meet members of the Jewish community to “prevent and debunk stereotypes, replacing them with actual experiences”.

According to the German publication Der Welt, which published an exposé on the inconsistencies in Mr Borner’s public talks, Mr Borner claimed that his family had “led a tranquil life” in Nazi Germany until 9th November 1938. 

He also allegedly claimed that his Jewish grandfather was initially sympathetic towards Hitler, whom he supposedly believed would bring stability to Germany following the First World War. 

According to the exposé, details such as the names of his relatives or the locations of events in his talks are often omitted or sometimes responded to by Mr Borner saying: “I don’t want to say that now.”

In one of his talks, Mr Borner reportedly claimed that Hollywood is “firmly in the Jewish grip”. 

In the same session, when talking about the Holocaust, he allegedly said: “Why did the Jews go through this? They were people with money, with international relations!”

When asked by an audience member about his relationship to Judaism, Mr Borner said, “I see myself as a political Jew by paying attention to where antisemitism appears in our society, even in very fine forms,” according to Der Welt. 

In 2020, a local German newspaper dedicated a feature to Mr Borner, where he wrote that he grew up in an Orthodox Jewish household and that his grandfather had committed suicide whilst in a concentration camp, among other details about his life. After the article was published, family members of Mr Borner reportedly came forward to dispute some of the so-called facts he had written about. 

In a statement, the Central Council of Jews in Germany, which denied that Mr Borner is part of the “Meet a Jew” initiative, said: “The damage done by such charlatans to such an important project is great.”

When contacted for comment by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Mr Borner said: “Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”

He then later wrote to the news outlet to say: “In today’s Western democracy, Jewish people prey on other Jewish fellow human beings.” He also added that in Germany, his family had never belonged to an official Jewish denomination or community.

The revelation comes after a similar case earlier this summer, in which a prominent German critic of Israel who had claimed to be Jewish now admitted that he is not. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably. 

, ,

Police investigate possibility of antisemitic motive after Israeli man is attacked in Berlin

German authorities are investigating the possibility of an antisemitic motive after an Israeli man was attacked by three men in Berlin. 

The victim, a nineteen-year-old Israeli tourist, told police that he was walking with an eighteen-year-old woman whilst talking on the phone in Hebrew. 

A car then stopped next to the victim. Three men came out of the car and began speaking to the victim in German, which he did not understand. 

It is claimed that the men proceeded to attack the victim, and allegedly kicked and beat him before they got back into the vehicle and drove away.

The victim contacted the local authorities once he had arrived at the hospital. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

Warsaw adopts International Definition of Antisemitism

Warsaw has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.

It is understood that Warsaw is the first Polish city to adopt the Definition.

In 2021, Poland announced that it recognised the Definition.

Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street.

,

French rapper says “I’d rather be accused of antisemitism than rape” in new track

Freeze Corleone, a French rapper, has recently released a new track that includes the lyrics: “I’d rather be accused of antisemitism than rape.”

The line refers to Gerald Darmanin, the French Minister of the Interior, who was under investigation following allegations of rape. It is understood that the case against Mr Darmanin has since been dropped.  

The new track, entitled “Shavkat”, is the debut single for Mr Corleone’s new album, “Attack of the Clones”, which is due to be released on 11th September this year. 

It is not the first time that the rapper has received backlash for writing controversial lyrics about Jews. In 2020, he faced criminal prosecution after his debut album was criticised for antisemitic lyrics and Holocaust denial in several tracks.

The lyrics included lines such as, “f*** the Shoah!”, “I arrived determined like Adolf in the 30s” and, “Too many Cohens, Jews in finance, politics, plots, school books.”

Mr Corleone was dropped by Universal Music France for the inflammatory lyrics. 

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Prominent German critic of Israel who claimed to be Jewish reveals he is not in fact Jewish

A German journalist who believed he was Jewish has revealed that he has discovered that he is not in fact Jewish. 

Fabian Wolff, who has previously written for the German-Jewish publication, the Jüdische Allgemeine, and Die Zeit, made the revelation in an essay published in the Zeit Online, entitled, “My Life as a Son”.

Mr Wolff is a well-known critic of the State of Israel and has publicly rejected the use of the International Definition of Antisemitism. 

In the essay, Mr Wolff wrote that he had believed he was Jewish after his mother, who passed away in 2017, had implied that his maternal great-grandmother was Orthodox Jewish. After being told this, he embraced his supposed Jewish identity, attended a synagogue and went as far as having a circumcision. 

According to Mr Wolff, he only realised that he was not Jewish recently after he spent a substantial time completing archival research. 

In his essay, he writes: “I will not speak from the position of a Jew in Germany because I cannot and because I am not.”

Articles that were written by Mr Wolff and have been published in Die Zeit now end with a note that says: “The author researched his family history in 2023 after this article was published. His research shows that he does not come from a Jewish family.”

Philipp Peyman Engel, a journalist who writes for the Jüdische Allgemeine, said: “In journalistic circles, the question was not when Fabian Wolff’s costume Judaism would be exposed, but only who would make it public first.”

He added, “Because in September 2021, some journalists in Berlin received detailed research into the extent to which [Mr] Wolff’s Jewish biography was made up from start to finish.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably. 

, , ,

Dame Melinda Simmons, British Ambassador to Ukraine, on antisemitism: “Call it out”

Dame Melinda Simmons, who has served as the British Ambassador to Ukraine since 2019, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where she spoke on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “denazification” comments, and gave advice to those looking to fight antisemitism.

This podcast can be listened to here, or watched here.

“Call it out,” she said when asked how people can tackle Jew-hatred. “That’s the one thing they can do, is to call it out. And when they ask what that means, what I say is, if you think there is a march going on, join the march. If you see something on social media, and you’re an active part of social media, you say on your social media that it’s not okay, or you’re not comfortable with it. If you see something really bad, you report it.”

Commenting on the perceived difference between antisemitic abuse in real life and online, Dame Melinda said: “If you saw someone being beaten up in the street, you would probably want to report that to the police.”

If you see the same sort of bullying going on online, you probably should be doing the same, and I’m interested that people see a distinction there because I don’t. Most of our life is lived online, in terms of that interaction now.”

Dame Melinda also spoke about how many Ukrainian Jews view President Putin’s remarks of “denazification”, one of Russia’s prominent justifications for its invasion of Ukraine.

President Putin has claimed throughout the invasion that he needed to “denazify” Ukraine, a stance that was reinforced by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and apparently also adopted by China.  

Asked last year why Russia needed to “denazify” Ukraine, given that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is Jewish, Mr Lavrov answered: “Zelenskyy a Jew? Even Hitler had Jewish origins, the main antisemites are Jews themselves.”

Speaking on how Ukrainians have viewed this claim, Dame Melinda said: “Denazification has not been an objective for Russia. It is a narrative. In general, it’s not received with any kind of credibility here.

“Among Jews, it’s the same, and I can’t speak for all Jews in Ukraine. I have not met all Jews in Ukraine, and it’s a very disparate range of communities, but I will say that among those that I have met in Kyiv, there is the same skepticism, but there is also a thread of fear about it. 

“That has a lot to do with the fact that Ukraine is the epicenter of the Holocaust. This is a country that lost nearly all of its Jews in the Holocaust. I’ve been here four years. Every town I go to, every town has a killing field. Every forest has a shooting site.”

Dame Melinda, a British Jew with Ukrainian roots who was born and raised in London’s East End, found her experiences in Ukraine eye-opening.

She said: “It’s unbelievable for someone from Western Europe to be walking around finding so much consistent evidence of killing of Jews, and that is something that runs deep even though the country has not come to terms with the same conscious, coming-to-terms with what has happened, as many Western European countries have.

“Ukraine hasn’t done that, most of Eastern Europe, frankly, hasn’t really done that yet. So for Jews who are here, who have that memory, there is always a twinge of fear about what that means.”

Considering what could happen were Russia to invade areas of Ukraine with large Jewish populations, she stated: “If [Russia] were able to come to urban centres and able to occupy, it would very quickly translate itself into the sort of antisemitism that we have seen inside Russia.”

Podcast Against Antisemitism, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, talks to a different guest about antisemitism each week. It streams every Thursday and is available through all major podcast apps and YouTube. You can also subscribe to have new episodes sent straight to your inbox.

Previous guests have included comedian David Baddiel, television personality Robert Rinder, writer Eve Barlow, Grammy-Award-winning singer-songwriter Autumn Rowe, and actor Eddie Marsan.

,

EU commissioner supports suspending funding to Palestinian Authority due to antisemitism in textbooks

An EU commissioner has backed calls to suspend aid to the Palestinian Authority pending the removal of antisemitism from its textbooks. 

Oliver Varhelyi, the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, expressed his support for the suspension following the passage of a resolution by the European Parliament. The resolution demands the suspension of aid to the Palestinian Authority for educational purposes until antisemitic rhetoric is removed from its textbooks.

According to Impact-se, an NGO which monitors educational resources used by Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the PA distributes study cards accusing Jews of being “in control of global events through financial power,” and sets assignments instructing children to describe Israeli soldiers as “Satan’s aides”.

Mr Varhelyi said: “Education for the next generation that supports peace, tolerance, coexistence and non-violence is a shared interest…We remain committed to deliver through constructive engagement with the Palestinian Authority, while reserving the right to take appropriate measures as necessary.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Massive riots in France feature antisemitic graffiti and chanting

The massive riots currently engulfing France have featured numerous instances of antisemitism.

The violent chaos that has spread across France and its overseas territories was sparked by the fatal shooting of a seventeen-year-old of Algerian origin by a police officer in the Parisian suburb of Nanterre. The officer has been charged with voluntary homicide and is in custody.

The riots have been particularly strong in neighbourhoods with large immigrant and Muslim populations, where cars have been torched and shops have been looted, with clashes with police, scores of arrests and hundreds of injuries.

But there has also been vandalism of Jewish sites and antisemitic chanting.

A monument in Nanterre commemorating the Holocaust and Jewish members of the French resistance to the Nazis was spray-painted with the phrase: “Police scum from Saint-Soline to Nanterre – don’t forget or forgive.” Not far from the monument, a building was graffitied with the words: “We are going to make you a Shoah.” The Shoah is the Hebrew term for the Holocaust.

The heavily-Jewish Parisian suburb of Sarcelles – nicknamed “little Jerusalem” for its large Jewish community – saw antisemitic chanting and the ransacking of Jewish businesses, along with non-Jewish businesses.

During a live broadcast of the riots by the Brut media group, chants such as “death to Jews” and “death to pigs” can reportedly be heard.

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

Russian Justice Ministry designates exiled Chief Rabbi of Russia as “foreign agent”

The Russian Government has declared one of the country’s Chief Rabbis as a “foreign agent” after he criticised Russia’s war on Ukraine and spoke of his fears of rising antisemitism.

Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, who is in self-imposed exile from Russia, was designated in a statement by the Russian Justice Ministry as a “foreign agent” for allegedly disseminating “false information about the decisions taken by public authorities” and for opposing Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Rabbi Goldschmidt said that “This is the first time since the beginning of the war that a religious leader has been declared a foreign agent and described by the Russian Government as a hostile threat.” He added, ominously, that “It is very likely that this will mean the start of a new antisemitic campaign against the Jewish community in Russia,” while insisting that he was proud to be on “the right side of history.”

The designation is tantamount to being labelled a spy or a traitor. It has been applied to journalists, human rights organisations, public figures and politicians since the war began.

Rabbi Goldschmidt left Moscow in March 2022 and resigned from his position, which he held for 30 years, a few months later, after allegedly resisting pressure on religious leaders to support and “sanctify” the war. He now lives in Israel.

He has previously spoken out about his concerns about the potential for a wave of antisemitism in Russia, and is part of a large migration of Jews from Russia, with over 40,000 immigrating to Israel alone since the war began.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Far-right Finnish minister quits days after taking office amid flurry of controversies

A far-right Finnish minister has resigned just days after taking office amid a number of controversies over his past and recent comments.

Vilhelm Junnila, Finland’s Minister for Economic Affairs from the far-right Finns Party, resigned on 28th June, just over a week since taking office, even after apologising over one scandal and surviving a no-confidence vote, two days before quitting, by a margin of 95 to 86.

The trigger for his resignation, apparently, was comments that he made in Parliament in 2019 when he was a freshman MP, in which he said, in reference to Africa, that “It would be justified for Finland to shoulder its responsibility by promoting climate abortions. Climate abortion would be a small step for a person, but a giant leap for humanity.”

He was also revealed by the country’s public broadcaster, Yle, to have never taken any political science classes at university, contradicting his claims about his education, and the channel also found no proof that he had launched and subsequently sold a technology company in Poland.

However, the politician has also been engulfed in controversies relating to antisemitism. He apologised after reportedly joking  about being assigned the number 88 by the Finnish Election Commission as his candidate number in the 2019 Parliamentary election. The number 88 refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is used by neo-Nazis as a code for “Heil Hitler”. Mr Junnila posted on Facebook: “Over the years, I have joked in a way that, looking back, seems foolish and immature. I have acted incorrectly, and I apologise for my actions.”

He also apologised for making a speech at a 2019 rally called “Flower 188”, arranged by the Coalition of Nationalists, a far-right organisation whose members included the militant Nordic Resistance Movement. “I would no longer participate in such an event if it was organised,” he wrote, expressing his aversion to the now-banned Nordic Resistance Movement, which he described as “aggressive and deliberately seeking conflict.”

Further controversies also came to light, however, including a social media message from Mr Junnila to his parliamentary assistant which included a picture of a snowman, taken from the internet, which resembled a Ku Klux Klan member holding a noose. It was accompanied by the caption: “I made a snowman according to your instructions.”

A 2013 birthday video message featuring Adolf Hitler was also uncovered, as was a 2014 picture of a gate with a swastika with a message from Mr Junnila saying how much he liked the design.

His election campaign reportedly featured the phrase “get gassed”, a slogan also previously used by the German AfD Party.

Mr Junnila said that he was resigning to spare Finland’s reputation, “despite the trust of the party and my parliamentary group.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

2,480 antisemitic incidents reported in Germany in 2022

A body that monitors antisemitism in Germany reported that 2,480 antisemitic incidents occurred in 2022.

The Department for Research and Information on Antisemitism, or RIAS, also reported that despite the overall number of incidents decreasing slightly in comparison to 2021, there were nine incidents of extreme violence, representing the highest ever number since national records started being taken in 2017. 

Felix Klein, the German Government’s Commissioner to Combat Antisemitism, highlighted Germany’s cultural sector as being particularly problematic. 

For example, last year the Director of Documenta, the quinquennial art festival held in the German city of Kassel, resigned after the fifteenth edition of the festival displayed works that contained inflammatory references toward Jews.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany.

,

Italy pledges to crack down on antisemitism in football 

Italian officials have signed a letter committing to crack down on antisemitic incidents at football matches.

The declaration forbids the use of racist and antisemitic language and symbols, which are not uncommon at matches.

For example, it prohibits players and fans from wearing the number 88, which refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is often used by neo-nazis as a code for “Heil Hitler”.

The letter also sets out guidelines detailing how to suspend matches in cases of discriminatory incidents. 

Matteo Piantedosi, the Interior Minister, said that the initiative represents a “great contribution” to Italian football.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “The ban on 88 shirts is part of a package of significant measures introduced by Italian football in the wake of a number of antisemitic incidents that have rocked the sport. The initiative includes the alignment of a code of ethics with the International Definition of Antisemitism, and a new policy to treat antisemitism like other forms of racism, including by suspending matches if supporters engage in antisemitic chants. Together, this is a serious and welcome package of reforms to combat anti-Jewish hatred in Italian football. We will be watching its effects.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Finnish politician apologises for Hitler joke 

Finland’s Minister for Economic Affairs has apologised for making a Hitler-related joke. 

Vilhelm Junnila, member of the far-right Finns Party, reportedly joked about being assigned the number 88 by the Finnish Election Commission as his candidate number in the 2019 parliamentary election. The number 88 refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is used by neo-Nazis as a code for “Heil Hitler”.

Mr Junnila posted on Facebook: “Over the years, I have joked in a way that, looking back, seems foolish and immature. I have acted incorrectly, and I apologise for my actions.”

Mr Junnila also apologised for making a speech at a 2019 rally called “Flower 188”, arranged by the Coalition of Nationalists, a far-right organisation whose members included the militant Nordic Resistance Movement. 

“I would no longer participate in such an event if it was organised,” he wrote, expressing his aversion to the now-banned Nordic Resistance Movement, which he described as “aggressive and deliberately seeking conflict.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Four men on trial charged with plotting terrorist attacks at Jewish sites in France

Four young men have been put on trial, charged with plotting terrorist attacks at Jewish sites in France. 

Prosecutors have stated that the group conspired together via a group chat titled “Operation WaffenKraft”. The Waffen-SS was the paramilitary branch of the Nazi Party.

The targets discussed on the group chat allegedly included the office of the anti-Jewish discrimination league (LICRA) and the headquarters of the Jewish council (CRIF). 

The group’s alleged leader, Alexandre Gilet, was a volunteer deputy police officer who was arrested after authorities discovered that he had ordered equipment that could be used to make explosives. Investigators reportedly found “regularly used” weapons, including two assault rifles, and lab equipment in his home.

Prosecutors also claim to have found photographs that appear to show the four suspects practising shooting in a forest in the summer of 2018.

According to a report by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

Germany commits $1.4 billion to Holocaust survivors in 2024

Germany has committed to giving $1.4 billion in reparations to Holocaust survivors globally in 2024.

The compensation will reportedly include $888.9 million to assist with the home care and support services for survivors.

Greg Schneider, the Executive Vice President of the New York-based Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, said that “Every year these negotiations become more and more critical as this last generation of Holocaust survivors age and their needs increase.”

The Claims Conference also negotiated continuing the funding of Holocaust education, which was extended for two more years and increased each year by $3.3 million, from approximately $41.6 million for 2026 to $45 million for 2027.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

, ,

CAA writes to Ryanair over inflight announcement that plane heading for Tel Aviv would be landing in “Palestine”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has written to Ryanair in relation to a reported announcement by cabin crew on a flight headed to Tel Aviv that the place would be landing in “Palestine”.

Passengers claimed that, about half an hour before the plane was due to land at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, a flight attendant announced over the PA system that the plane was “approaching Palestine.” It is claimed that the announcement was repeated more than once in both English and Italian.

Passengers on the 10th June flight from Bologna, Italy, claimed that the flight attendant refused to apologise or correct the remark, and a passenger who tried to photograph the attendant was accused of creating a disturbance that risked the safety of the flight and was threatened with arrest.

Tel Aviv, and Ben Gurion Airport, are universally recognised as being in Israel, except by those who do not believe in the legitimacy of a Jewish state and content that Israel should not exist. According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination,” is an example of antisemitism.

The Irish airline apologised to the Israeli ambassador to Ireland, claiming that the announcement was a n error by the junior member of staff.

Eddie Wilson, the CEO of Ryanair, said: “It is not Ryanair policy (or our crew practice) to refer to Tel Aviv as being in any country other than Israel. The crew member in question has been spoken to and received a warning to ensure that such an error is never repeated. Israel is an important partner for Ryanair.”

He added: “This was an innocent mistake, and the crew member apologised on the PA when they realised what had happened. We can assure you that the crew member who made the announcement was extremely apologetic and has assured us that this mistake will never be repeated.”

Two years ago, a group of West Ham fans sang an antisemitic chant at a Hasidic passenger on a Ryanair flight.

,

Kandinsky painting seized by Nazis to be returned to Jewish owners

A painting by Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky is set to be returned to its Jewish owners after being seized by Nazis during the Holocaust.

The 1927 painting entitled The Colourful Life was originally owned by a Jewish couple living in Amsterdam, Hedwig Lewenstein Weyermann and Irma Lewenstein Klein. 

A German commission investigating the matter concluded that “the painting was seized as a result of persecution,” and that the Jewish couple in Amsterdam “were persecuted as Jews” in 1940 when the Nazis occupied the Netherlands.

The painting is currently in the possession of the Bavarian state bank.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Spanish politician Amparo Rubiales quits after calling rival politician a “Jewish Nazi”

Amparo Rubiales has announced her intention to step down after calling a rival politician a “Jewish Nazi.”

The former Chair of the Andalusia branch of the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party made the comment about centre-right Popular Party politician Bendodo Benasayag. 

AfterMr Bensaygag said that “Spain is not strong enough to withstand another five years under [Prime Minister] Pedro Sánchez”, Ms Rubiales tweeted: “This is really the discourse of a Nazi Jew.”

Following criticism, Ms Rubiales is reported to have tweeted: “I have nothing against Jews and everything against Nazis.”

The Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain condemned Ms Rubiales’ comment, stating: “This is antisemitism…it is intolerable and despicable to use the origin, tendencies, belonging or religion of an adversary to make a political criticism.

“We also reiterate that the use of terms that have to do with Nazism to compare people or situations of the present time, supposes the trivialisation of one of the most criminal regimes in History.”

The Andalusia branch of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party described its former Chair’s comment as “unacceptable” and “objectionable”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Kosovo adopts International Definition of Antisemitism 

Kosovo has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism. 

Ines Demiri, Kosovo’s Charge d’Affairs to Israel, announced the decision on Twitter, making Kosovo one of the few Muslim-majority countries to adopt the definition.

The Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo unanimously voted to adopt the Definition.

Campaign Against Antisemitism applauds the decision, which demonstrates Kosovo’s solidarity with the Jewish community at a time of rising antisemitism in Europe.

Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Kosovo joins a growing list of national governments around the world to use the Definition.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Polish town holds foam party on Jewish cemetery 

A city in eastern Poland held a foam party on the site of Jewish graves.

The Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich, has condemned the Mayor of Kazimierz Dolny’s decision to mark the 1st June holiday known as ‘Children’s Day’ with a celebration in this location.

The site is estimated to host the graves of a few hundred Jews, and was demolished and made into a children’s playground during the Soviet occupation of Poland.

A prominent hasidic figure, Rabbi Yehezkel Taub, is also believed to be buried there. Many members of the Modzitz Hasidic community make an annual pilgrimage to his grave. 

Chief Rabbi Schudrich explained his unsuccessful attempts to persuade Polish authorities to move this park, saying: “We offered a really nice solution that would involve us helping to fund a new playground and moving the cemetery to an empty field nearby. But they keep stalling or cancelling meetings and it seems like the town just doesn’t care.”

Rabbi Schudrich added that the party “puts into question whether further talks about the site make sense, and casts doubt on whether, regardless of religion, both parties are guided by common values drawn from it.”

Rabbi Schudrich has appeared on a previous episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

Image credit: JC

, ,

Vienna municipality plans to tilt statue of antisemitic mayor by 3.5 degrees 

The Vienna municipality has resolved to tilt the statue of former antisemitic mayor by 3.5 degrees in an effort to take a stance against antisemitism.

The statue of Karl Lueger, located in the heart of the Austrian capital on Ringstrasse Boulevard, was formerly protected by the Vienna municipality after protesters called for its removal in 2020.

Mr Lueger served as mayor of Vienna for thirteen years until his death in 1910 at the age of 65. He was known for antisemitic rhetoric that is claimed to have inspired the young Hitler, who lived in the Austrian capital and spoke in Mein Kampf of his “undisguised admiration” for the Viennese mayor.

For example, in one speech delivered to members of the Christian-Social Workers’ Association in Vienna in July 1899, Mr Leuger invoked the kind of antisemitic rhetoric that would later be employed by the Nazis, saying: “The influence on the masses is in the hands of the Jews…the largest part of the press is in their hands; the vast majority of capital and especially big business is in the hands of the Jews.” He added: “above all, this is about the liberation of the Christian people from the domination of Judaism.”

Although Mr Lueger’s name was previously erased from the street next to the University of Vienna, his bronze statue, which he commissioned himself, still stands in Dr Karl Lueger Platz, the square situated next to the capital’s arts and crafts museum.

The idea to tilt the 4.5m high statue was proposed in 2010 by Klemens Wihlidal, an art student. The intention is reportedly to give the observer a nagging sense of disorientation, since the angle of inclination is believed to be the point at which the human eye begins to notice that something is wrong.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

, ,

German Culture Minister heckled at Jewish music competition over previous endorsement of inflammatory art exhibit

Germany’s Culture Minister was met with heckles and boos at a Jewish music competition over her previous support of an art exhibit which displayed inflammatory images.

The crowd at the Jewrovision youth music competition, organised by the Central Council of Jews in Germany, expressed dismay at the presence of Claudia Roth, reportedly shouting: “You are not welcome here.”

The 2022 Documenta art exhibition in Kassel presented several inflammatory images, including one of an Orthodox Jew with blood-shot eyes, large sharp teeth, and an ‘SS’ hat on their head.

The controversy led the director of the art festival to resign.

Ms Roth, of the Green Party, reportedly has a history of fueling outrage amongst Germany’s Jewish community. For example, Ms Roth’s department funded Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, the artistic director of Berlin’s House of World Cultures, who has allegedly made numerous inflammatory statements regarding Israel and Jews.

Ms Roth’s spokesperson said: “She accepts such criticism and takes it seriously.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

, , , ,

Antisemitism on Twitter flares up over Israeli Eurovision finalist 

Antisemitic content has reportedly increased dramatically after the Israeli Eurovision contestant finished in third place. 

Cyberwell, an NGO that uses artificial intelligence to track online antisemitism, released a report analysing Eurovision-related antisemitism, revealing that over ninety percent of anti-Jewish rhetoric was found on Twitter.

Tal-Or Cohen Montemayor, founder and Executive Director of Cyberwell, said that its monitory technology “noticed a specific uptick in antisemitic narratives criticising the Eurovision as being rigged by the Jews or specifically picking on Noa Kirel.”

Ms Kirel, Israel’s contestant, also faced online backlash due to comments made regarding  Poland’s role in the Holocaust. Ms Kirel told Israeli media: “Receiving twelve points from Poland after what our people and my family have been through in the Holocaust, it’s a true victory.”

Pawel Jablonski, Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister, denounced the comment and denied the implication of Poles’ complicity in the Holocaust, an accusation that was made a criminal offence in Poland in 2018.

While Poles fought the Nazis and many helped to save Jews, much of the population either actively collaborated with the genocide of the Jewish people or stood by as it took place predominantly on Polish soil during the Nazi occupation.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

German man sentenced to prison over attempted synagogue arson attack

A German man has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for attempting to carry out an arson attack on a synagogue.

The incident took place on New Year’s Eve in Bavaria when the convict shattered the window of a synagogue before attempting to light a firework and throw it into the building. 

The man has been charged with damage to property. His name was not released in accordance with German privacy laws.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

Warsaw University unveils plaque honouring memory of past Jewish students victimised by Polish antisemitism 

The University of Warsaw has unveiled a plaque honouring the memory of its past Jewish students victimised by Polish antisemitism. 

Polish laws introduced in the 1930s required Jewish students to sit only in assigned areas at the back of lecture theatres, referred to as “ghetto seats”.

This practice originated in 1935 at the Polytechnic in Lviv, and by 1937 it became law and was applied to academic institutions throughout Poland. 

The unveiling ceremony was attended by Yacov Livine, the Israeli Ambassador to Poland, who said: “We must remember the dark parts in our joint history as well as the enlightened ones.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Hamburg court refuses to view brutal attack of elderly Jewish man as antisemitic crime 

The Hamburg Regional Court has refused to view the brutal attack of a sixty-one-year-old Jewish man as an antisemitic crime.

Andreas Roger underwent three operations and has been left blind in one eye after reportedly being beaten by a group of young men in central Hamburg whilst they shouted, “Free Palestine”, “F*ck Israel” and “F*ck Jews”. 

Mr Rogers was travelling to a demonstration with a small group and was standing next to an Israeli flag at the time of the assault.

One of the assailants was convicted and sentenced to a two-year juvenile sentence for aggravated assault in conjunction with insult.

Mr Roger’s expressed his dismay at the decision, saying: “I am not satisfied at all that the court is refusing to classify this as an antisemitic crime. Of course it was. I am at risk of going completely blind. This really affects me emotionally. It leaves me feeling helpless.” 

Mr Rogers has also revealed that his injuries have forced him to take an early retirement. 

Stefan Hassel, Hamburg’s Commissioner for Jewish Life and Combating Antisemitism, observed that Mr Rogers’ attackers “have not shown any remorse for their actions.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

Multiple Wikipedia editors banned after writing articles absolving Poland of its role in Holocaust 

Wikipedia has banned three editors from writing articles on Poland during World War II after it was discovered that articles were being written which apparently absolve Poland of its role in the Holocaust. 

The investigation was launched by Wikipedia’s Arbitration Committee after an academic study concluded that the editors in question had propagated misinformation by denying that Polish people contributed to the experience of Jews in the Holocaust. 

The Committee concluded that the editors had breached the community’s code of conduct, yet reportedly refused to comment on the dispute over Poles’ collaboration with the Nazis. 

Controversy over Poland’s role in the Holocaust has recently flared-up again following comments made by Israeli Eurovision finalist Noa Kirel.

Ms Kirel told Israeli media: “Receiving twelve points from Poland after what our people and my family have been through in the Holocaust, it’s a true victory.”

Pawel Jablonski, Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister, denounced the comment and denied the implication of Poland’s participation in the Holocaust, an accusation which was made a criminal offence in Poland in 2018.

While Poles fought the Nazis and many helped to save Jews, much of the population either actively collaborated with the German-led genocide of the Jewish people or stood by as it took place predominantly on Polish soil during the Nazi occupation.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

German professor who claimed Jewish people “learned evil” from the Nazis acquitted

A microbiology professor in Germany was acquitted after being charged with inciting hatred in relation to comments that he made equating Israel to Nazi Germany.

Sucharit Bhakdi, 74, is a former head of the Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz and is a member of the fringe political party ‘die Basis’.

In a campaign video, he stated: “The people who fled from this land where the arch evil was, and have found their land, have turned their own land into something even worse than [Nazi] Germany was. That is the bad thing about the Jews – they learn well.

“There are no people who learn better than they do. But they have learned evil now – and put it into practice. That’s why Israel is now living hell.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

German court upholds police ban of Nakba demonstration in Berlin over fears of antisemitic incitement 

A German court has upheld a police ban of the annual Nakba demonstration in Berlin, due to fears that it could incite antisemitism.

The police stated that the event could lead to “antisemitic incitement of the people, glorification of violence, the conveyance of a willingness to use violence and thus to intimidation and violence.”

The Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg agreed, referring to similar recent events, and upheld the ban on the rally titled “demonstration for the fundamental right to freedom of assembly and expression on the 75th anniversary of the Nakba”, which 1,000 participants had registered to attend.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

Jewish people “learned evil” from the Nazis: Professor faces criminal charges after allegedly equating Israel to Nazi Germany

A microbiology professor in Germany is facing criminal charges after allegedly equating Israel to the Nazis. 

Sucharit Bhakdi, 74, is a member of the fringe political party ‘Die Basis’ and will appear in court this month in connection with his controversial statements.

In a campaign video, he stated: “The people who fled from this land where the arch evil was, and have found their land, have turned their own land into something even worse than [Nazi] Germany was. That is the bad thing about the Jews – they learn well.

“There are no people who learn better than they do. But they have learned evil now – and put it into practice. That’s why Israel is now living hell.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

From 1991 to 2021, Prof. Sucharit was head of the Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

German Teenagers appear to give Nazi salute in Auschwitz 

German Teenagers appeared to give Nazi salutes whilst visiting Auschwitz in a photograph recently disseminated on social media.

The group from Leipzig visited the notorious former death camp, in which more than a million people are estimated to have perished, as part of an educational trip. 

The now-removed image reportedly displayed four teenagers, two of whom were  performing a pose synonymous with the Nazi salute.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Passengers in disbelief as recording of Hitler speech plays over speaker system on Austrian train

A recording of an Adolf Hitler speech was played over the speaker system of a train travelling to Vienna.

David Stoegmueller, a Green Party MP who was on board the Austrian Federal Railways  (ÖBB) train at the time, said that “We heard two episodes. First there was 30 seconds of a Hitler speech, and then I heard ‘Sieg Heil’.”

According to Mr Stoegmuller, a Holocaust survivor was also a passenger at the time, and the elderly lady began “crying” in reaction to the recording.

Austrian Federal Railways were keen to “distance themselves” from the incident and announced: “We can currently assume that the announcements were made by people directly on the train via intercoms. We have reported the matter to the police.”

The perpetrators are yet to be found. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Austria, which have reached their highest number in decades, according to recent research.

,

Ice cream stand set up outside Auschwitz refuses to close 

An ice-cream stand set up on private property directly outside Auschwitz has refused to close despite the offence its presence has caused.

The site managers of the notorious former death camp, in which more than a million people are estimated to have perished, described the ice-cream stand as “tasteless” and “disrespectful”.

The stand appeared in late April, following which images of it have circulated on social media, with many condemning the “inappropriate” location.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Switzerland agrees to erect monument to commemorate Nazi victims 

Switzerland has agreed to erect a monument to commemorate the victims of the Nazis.

The Swiss Federal Council has committed the equivalent of £2.2 billion to fund the memorial, which will be situated in Bern, its capital. 

The Swiss Federal Council stated: “The Federal Council considers it an important task to keep alive the memory of the consequences of National Socialism, namely the Holocaust and the fate of the six million Jews who were killed and all other victims of the National Socialist regime. 

“The country was not an island of the righteous fighting back against barbarism, so this monument must stand in the federal capital, where the political decisions were made. Switzerland left the borders permeable to trade and closed them to people. Taking responsibility for it means facing the past -— and remembering.” 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

, , ,

European Parliament calls for suspension of educational support to Palestinian Authority due to antisemitism in textbooks

The European Parliament has passed a resolution demanding the suspension of aid to the Palestinian Authority for educational purposes until antisemitic rhetoric is removed from its textbooks.

The vote took place on 10th May, with 421 votes in favour of calling on the European Commission to apply a suspension, out of the 577 votes cast by participating Parliamentarians. 

According to Impact-se, an NGO which monitors educational resources used by Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the PA distributes study cards accusing Jews of being “in control of global events through financial power,” and sets assignments instructing children to describe Israeli soldiers as “Satan’s aides”.

A similar resolution was passed by the European Parliament in May 2021, resulting in aid to the Palestinian Authority being frozen for thirteen months. However, aid recommenced in January 2022, after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated “all the difficulties are gone.”

In 2020, Norway cut its funding to the PA over similar concerns, and the UK has done so as well, reportedly for other reasons.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Over 150 Dutch footballs fans arrested over antisemitic Chants en route to match

Dutch police arrested over 150 football supporters for chanting antisemitic slurs.

AT5, a local news station, reported that those arrested were AZ Alkmaar supporters. 

The incident occurred close to Ajax Amsterdam’s stadium at a metro station on 6th May.

Amsterdam has had multiple Jewish chairman and is widely viewed in the country as the ‘Jewish club’. Consequently, this was not the first time that supporters of teams playing against Ajax Amsterdam have chanted antisemitic slurs about the team.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Greece bans far-right party linked to neo-Nazi group from participating in general election

Greece’s Supreme Court has banned a far-right party linked to a neo-Nazi group from participating in the May general election. 

Nine out of ten Supreme Court judges backed the prohibition on the Hellenes Party, asserting that its “racist and intolerant ideas” were dangerous for democracy. 

Hellenes was formed in 2020, shortly after which its founder, Ilias Kasidiaris, was imprisoned for his senior role in Golden Dawn, a neo-Nazi group and political party that the court referred to as a criminal organisation. 

Party leader Ilias Kasidiaris, who bears a swastika tattoo and is reported to deny the Holocaust, continues to communicate to his followers from prison via social-media. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

“From the River to the Sea” chanted at Berlin rally

Incendiary chants relating to Jewish people and Israel were chanted on the street in Berlin during a demonstration in Berlin. 

The 1st May anti-Israel rally in Germany’s capital featured the chant “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” was heard. This chant only makes sense as a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a State of Palestine — and is thus an attempt to deny Jews, uniquely, the right to self-determination, which is a breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. 

Demonstrators reportedly showed open support for the anti-Israel Samidoun group, an organisation that the Israeli Government has classified as a terrorist group. Israel’s National Bureau for Counter Terror stated that: “The Samidoun organisation was designated as a terrorist organisation as it is part of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and was founded by members of the PFLP in 2012”. 

Berlin police estimated 12,000 protesters attended the protest, and have since banned two additional rallies planned by the Samidoun activists. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased significantly.

,

Report reveals almost 500 antisemitic incidents in Poland in 2022

A recent report has found that almost 500 antisemitic incidents took place in Poland in 2022.

The study was conducted by JTA, a Jewish association based in Warsaw. 

JTA’s findings of 488 incidents are more than four times the number reported for 2021 by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.

The data was collected via an online portal which was open to submissions and through extensive interviews with community members.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

, ,

Neo-Nazi reportedly projects laser message across the Anne Frank House accusing her diary of being a forgery  

A known neo-Nazi has reportedly been arrested on suspicion of projecting a laser message across the Anne Frank house which implied that her diary was a forgery.

The message was allegedly projected by Robert Wilson in February. The message claimed that Anne Frank was the “inventor of the ballpoint pen”, an assertion that references a conspiracy theory that claims that her famous diary was fabricated because it was written with a ballpoint pen, which was uncommon in Europe at the time.

Mr Wilson was formerly a resident of San Diego, but appears to have fled to Poland to evade hate crime charges in the United States.

He is also a leading figure in the Goyim Defense League, which has been described as an antisemitic hate group whose membership reportedly contains several neo-Nazis. In the United States, the group is divided into regional branches and regularly distributes antisemitic flyers.

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

Image credit: inewsource

, ,

Canadian academic convicted of carrying out terrorist bombing outside Paris Synagogue 43 years ago

A Canadian university professor has been convicted of carrying out a 1980 terrorist bombing outside a synagogue in Paris.

Hassan Diab, 69, a Lebanese-born sociologist of Palestinian-Arab heritage at Carleton University in Ottawa, has been given a life sentence for planting the motorcycle bomb outside the Rue Copernic Synagogue. Four people were killed and 46 were wounded.

The bombing took place on Friday evening on 3rd October 1980, near the beginning of Shabbat and during the Jewish festival of Simchat Torah.

The neo-Nazi Federation of National and European Action took responsibility, but investigators concluded that Arab terrorists were in fact behind the attack, and eventually sought the extradition of Prof. Diab, which was granted in 2011. He spent over three years in prison in France while the investigation continued, only for the charges to be dismissed in 2018, with Prof. Diab able to return to Canada. Appeals courts in France reversed the dismissal, however, paving the way for this trial.

Prof. Diab has always claimed that he was in Lebanon at the time of the bombing. His conviction in absentia is likely to be followed by a second extradition request.

Responding to the verdict, the Hassan Diab Support Committee, which includes the former Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, called on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to make it “absolutely clear” that no second extradition would be accepted.

It  was the first deadly attack against Jewish people in France since the end of WWII and became a template for future such attacks by Islamist terrorist groups.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

Simpsons Holocaust mural vandalised

A mural commemorating victims of the Holocaust has been defaced in Italy.

Track 21, the Simpsons deported to Auschwitz, a Holocaust mural by Italian artist, aleXandro Palombo, was found defaced earlier this week, on Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day).

The mural, based on the cartoon show, The Simpsons, depicts emaciated versions of the cartoon characters wearing blue, striped clothes and yellow Stars of David on their chests. The mural was revealed on International Holocaust Memorial Day in January on a wall of the Shoah Memorial of Milan.

The vandal scribbled over the mural and blotted out the Stars of David entirely. 

It is understood that the incident has been reported to the police.

Roberto Jarach, the President of the Shoah Foundation Memorial, said, “what worries us is to perceive a possible revisionist and antisemitic trend in this act.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism incidents in Italy which have markedly increased according to a recent report.

Image credit: aleXsandro Palombo

,

Latvia adopts International Definition of Antisemitism

Latvia has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.

In a statement, the Government announced that “The Plan for the Reduction of Racism and Antisemitism 2023” was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on 11th April 2023 and endorsed the application of the International Definition of Antisemitism  in Latvia. 

According to the statement, this also means that the Definition “is also being endorsed as a working tool at the government level.”

The national action plan includes measures for the enshrining of the prevention of antisemitism and racism in legislation and its pursuit in practice. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism applauds the decision, which demonstrates the Latvian Government’s solidarity with the Jewish community at this worrying time for Jews in Europe.

Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Latvia joins a growing list of national governments and public bodies to use the Definition.

,

France 24 suspends four journalists over allegations of antisemitism

France 24 has suspended four journalists in connection with allegations of antisemitism.

The announcement by the French state-owned network, which broadcasts in French, English, Arabic and Spanish, came following a report by the media watchdog CAMERA into the social media output of Joelle Maroun, France 24’s correspondent in Beirut, its Jerusalem reporter Laila Odeh, Geneva correspondent Dina Abi-Saab and reporter Sharif Bibi.

Ms Maroun is claimed to have tweeted: “They asked Hitler, ‘What did you do with the Jews?’ He said, ‘Nothing extraordinary, [just having] barbecue with the guys.” On another occasion, she allegedly tweeted, “Rise, sir Hitler, rise, there are a few people that need to be burned.”

Ms Odeh, the sister of a Fatah terrorist killed in fighting with the IDF, allegedly tweeted: “Because I am a Palestinian refugee, I demand of the Arab League to arm me so that I retrieve my land which Israel has unlawfully occupied. And because I am a sister of a martyr, I demand of the Arab League to arm me so that I retrieve the body of my martyr brother.” She also allegedly described Moshe Agadi, a 58-year-old father of four who was killed during a Hamas rocket strike, as an “Israeli settler in Ashkelon,” implying that the Jewish presence in the coastal Israeli city is not legitimate.

The journalists have been suspended pending an investigation, which, according to Le Figaro, will be conducted by France Médias Monde, a state-owned company that supervises French public broadcasters.

In a statement, France 24 said that the decision “taken in the context of this situation aims to protect the integrity of the work of all the Arabic-speaking editorial staff of France 24,  whose editorial content, both on the air and in digital environments, makes it a balanced channel, non-partisan, verifying the facts and cultivating constructive debate thanks to the professionalism of its journalists.”

The broadcaster added: “As in all the languages ​​of France 24, the Arabic-speaking channel is illustrated every day by its commitment to the fight against antisemitism, racism and discrimination.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

, , ,

Scottish Prison Service to investigate how notorious French Holocaust denier Vincent Reynouard is disseminating far-right material online from his jail cell

The Scottish Prison Service is investigating how a French Holocaust-denier is disseminating far-right material online from his jail cell.

Vincent Reynouard, 53, was arrested late last year by Police Scotland officers in Anstruther, Fife, in a joint operation involving Scottish and French authorities, after he spent two years on the run. Campaign Against Antisemitism nworked with French Jewish organisations, with the help of Lord Austin, to secure his arrest. He denied his consent to be extradited to France in a hearing in December, and today his lawyer asked the court for more time to prepare for his extradition hearing.

An investigation by The Herald has also found that Mr Reynouard has continued to post updates on his far-right blog Sans Concession, despite being incarcerated.

The blog features as its main image a photo of Auschwitz, and describes its “objectives” as “the dissemination of historical revisionism and the rehabilitation of National Socialism.”

Since his arrest in November, Mr Reynouard has reportedly posted some sixteen articles on the blog, ranging from posts on prison life in HMP Edinburgh and his relationships with fellow prisoners and guards, to extracts from what Mr Reynouard claims will form part of his memoirs.

In one post, Mr Reynouard wrote: “I dreamed of another world where social justice would reign, as under Hitler. However, we were no longer in Hitler’s time, and I dreamed of a National Socialism ‘without the camps’, a peaceful National Socialism, solely oriented towards the good of all, therefore unrelated to what could have happened contingently 50 years earlier.”

In another blog post, Mr Reynouard compared his stay at the prison to being “on vacation on a cruise ship”.

According to the Scottish Prison Service, people being held in Scotland are not allowed to send or receive e-mails, nor are they permitted to send any material that is intended “for publication”. The Service has the power to stop post being sent to a prisoner if he is found to be contravening the rules.

A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individuals. We can advise that people in our care do not have the right to send or receive electronic communications. They are also not permitted to send any material which is intended for publication, for the use by radio or television.

“They do, however, have access to writing materials in order to maintain contact with solicitors, family, and friends, and it is highly possible for a third party to submit material for publication on their behalf. Where we believe criminality is taking place we would report this to Police Scotland, and SPS have the ability to put in place restrictions on correspondence to and from those in our care, where we believe there is justifiably reasons to do so in line with prison rules.”

Mr Reynouard was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

In November, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice.

Scottish police reportedly arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France.

Late last year, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where it was heard that he had been granted legal aid. He will be back in court next month, with a full extradition hearing scheduled for February.

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

, , ,

Man arrested after “keeping British girls in cellar for nine months” reportedly a Holocaust-denier and conspiracist

A man arrested after allegedly “keeping British girls in cellar for nine months” is reported to be a Holocaust-denier and conspiracist.

Tom Landon, 54, is understood to have been reported to social services by neighbours who heard children’s voices emanating from the British man’s home in Obritz in northern Austria near the German border. It is claimed that whenever anyone approached the house, the children’s voices became silent.

Inspectors found Mr Landon and his 40-year-old British partner at the home, and five young children between seven months and five years of age.

News reports allege that Mr Landon has ties to the German Reichsburger movement, which recently sought to conduct a coup on the German state, which was foiled by authorities.

According to the Deputy Mayor of Obritz, “He’s not from here and has only been Obritz for a short time. Before that, he apparently lived in England. I think he worked in the IT sector.”

He added that Mr Landon could speak English and German, and that the children did not appear to have been mistreated and had been seen walking around the town a fortnight earlier.

Image credit: Twitter

,

Quarter of young Dutch believe Holocaust is a myth, according to new poll

A new poll has found that almost one in four Dutch people born after 1980 believe that the Holocaust is “a myth” or that the number of Jewish people murdered by the Nazis is “greatly exaggerated”.

29 percent of Dutch people believed that two million or fewer Jews were killed, with 37 percent of millennials and Generation Z affirming that view. A majority of respondents also did not know that six million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust.

Twelve percent of those polled said that the crimes of Nazi Germany were untrue or exaggerated, rising to 23% among young Dutch.

Almost a third of Dutch millennials also do not know that Anne Frank died in a concentration camp, despite her renowned diary documenting her life in hiding in The Netherlands.

The survey, conducted by the US-based Claims Conference, polled 2,000 Dutch people last December. Similar surveys were previously conducted in the United States, Britain, France, Austria and Canada, but the results for the Dutch polling was more troubling than the other surveys

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in The Netherlands and throughout Europe.

,

Croatia adopts International Definition of Antisemitism

Croatia has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.

The announcement came in advance of Croatia’s assumption of the Presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) in 2023-24.

In a statement, the Government said: “Ahead of the Croatian presidency of the IHRA, and contemporary challenges in opposing the distortion of the truth about the Holocaust and the suppression of antisemitism and anti-Roma racism, the Government has established a National Coordination Body of the IHRA Presidency and the Secretariat of the IHRA Presidency.

“During its session on Friday, the Croatian Government adopted the legally non-binding working definition of antisemitism, the definition of Holocaust denial and distortion, and the definition of anti-Romani racism and discrimination of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA).”

Campaign Against Antisemitism applauds the decision, which demonstrates the Croatian Government’s solidarity with the Jewish community at this worrying time for Jews in Europe.

Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Croatia joins a growing list of national governments and public bodies to use the Definition.

, , , , ,

Award-winning French Jewish filmmaker Amanda Sthers reveals she left France due to antisemitism

Amanda Sthers, the award-winning French author, playwright, and filmmaker whose critically acclaimed work has earned her the title Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres from the Government of France, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where she has revealed that she left her home country due to antisemitism.

Ms Sthers, herself a Jewish person in the public eye, is no stranger to experiences of antisemitism.

“I always feel that every time there is a very strong increase [in] antisemitic incidents, democracy’s in danger,” she said.

According to France’s Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France skyrocketed by 75% in 2021. 

Additionally, last year saw three reported murders of French Jews. Eyal Haddad, 34, from the town of Longperrier, north-east of Paris, was said to have been brutally murdered with an axe before the alleged perpetrator reportedly attempted to burn his face and bury the body, while Rene Hadjaj, 90, was allegedly defenestrated from an apartment block in Lyon.

Jeremy Cohen, 31, was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram. At first, Mr Cohen’s death was treated as a traffic accident, until video footage released by the family appeared to show a group of men attacking Mr Cohen, who is believed to have been wearing his kippah, or skullcap, prompting him to flee for safety without noticing the tram. He was then taken to the hospital but did not survive his injuries.

Our host asked Ms Sthers: “How concerned are you about antisemitism in France right now? Is it something you think about?”

“Yeah. I think about it so much that I left,” the filmmaker responded. “I left seven years ago. I live in LA now, and I have a hard time feeling at home in France anymore. And it’s very heartbreaking…it’s really hard for me because I can feel in the air that there’s something really hateful.”

While Ms Sthers acknowledges the ongoing threat of far-right groups, she believes that the recent spike in antisemitism is partly due to emerging conspiracy theories about Jews and Islamist ideology.

She continued: “France is not a safe place for Jewish people anymore, and I don’t understand how the government doesn’t want to say more about it…they are putting the entire nation in danger by not trying to keep Jews safe in their country. And I’m saying in ‘their country’, I still have a passport but I just don’t feel that it’s my country anymore.”

Commenting on how life is different for her in the United States, she noted how she felt as though her Judaism was not “a question that you had to avoid.”

“I remember the first time they [said] ‘Oh, you’re Jewish!’, it was not the same tone that was used in France.”

However, Ms Sthers was mindful to point out that, for Jewish people, “it’s not heaven in the States, either.”

“Lately, it’s changing. I think the pandemic increased [the amount of] antisemitic incidents, increased a lot of paranoia. Every time there’s a crisis, antisemitism is increasing,” she said.

Ms Sthers also pointed to the antisemitic statements made by rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. 

Despite the increase in antisemitic incidents in the United States, Ms Sthers’ experiences in France have led her to feel safer in her new home.

“I remember in Paris, I was always telling my sons, ‘Don’t mention your bar mitzvah when we’re in the taxi, just be careful, just stay low-profile,’ because I was afraid for them,” she disclosed.

Throughout the interview, Ms Sthers also discussed a variety of other topics, including her award-winning film Holy Lands, how to tackle antisemitism through art, and her experience of working with the late Jewish film icon, James Caan.

This podcast can be listened to here, or watched here.

Podcast Against Antisemitism, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, talks to a different guest about antisemitism each week. It streams every Thursday and is available through all major podcast apps and YouTube. You can also subscribe to have new episodes sent straight to your inbox.

Previous guests have included comedian David Baddiel, television personality Robert Rinder, writer Eve Barlow, Grammy-Award-winning singer-songwriter Autumn Rowe, and actor Eddie Marsan.

, ,

Fugitive French Holocaust denier refuses to consent to extradition to France

A notorious French Holocaust denier living in Britain has denied his consent to being extradited to France, following his recent arrest by Police Scotland officers in Anstruther.

The arrest of Vincent Reynouard, 53, came after he spent two years on the run.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

According to far-right activist Fabrice Jérôme Bourbon — who was himself convicted in December 2021 in connection with denial of war crimes and defending Hervé Ryssen and fined €8,000 — Mr Reynouard was visited by local police and Interpol on 25th October 2021.

Mr Bourbon elaborated in his far-right weekly magazine, Rivarol, claiming that police and Interpol visited Mr Reynouard’s flat at the time, believed to be in Kent, at around 16:00 in order to apprehend him and potentially initiate extradition proceedings. Mr Reynouard allegedly concealed his identity and fled the scene, remaining at large.

In November, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice. We are delighted that he has finally been caught.

Scottish police reportedly arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France.

Earlier this week, Mr Reynouard’s lawyer again told the court that the defendant “does not consent to extradition to France.”

He added: “I was instructed at about 18:00 last night and I do require some time to consider the matter. There is a matter that is, I think, of legal significance that I need more time to consider.”

This pronouncement arrives after it emerged that Mr Reynouard wrote that he expects to spend “five years or more” in a French prison, should the extradition request be successful. 

In his letter to Rivarol, Mr Reynouard appealed to his supporters — whom, it has been reported, had been sending him donations whilst he was on the run — for pens, paper and various stationary so that he may write his memoirs, which he proposed be published by the far-right magazine.

“These memoirs are part of my revisionist mission, a mission which consists in giving answers to others,” he said. “Hence my desire to hide nothing, including the events that argue against me. Indeed, a true story is much richer in lessons than a pro domo plea or—worse—than a novel built for its own advantage.”

On his arrest, he wrote: “Why this decision? Because after my arrest, four days ago, by the Scottish authorities, I have no illusions: the French authorities who, on June 25, 2021, issued a European arrest warrant against me, will obtain my extradition. Back in France, I will serve several prison sentences for ‘disputing crimes against humanity’.

“In total, these sentences exceed 24 months (29 months to be exact). There will undoubtedly be other convictions for the same reason, because since my exile in Great Britain, in June 2015, I have published many revisionist videos likely to fall under the Gayssot law. Several are not time-barred, either having been published less than a year ago or already being sued. Therefore, I expect to stay in prison for five years or more.”

Last month, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where it was heard that he had been granted legal aid. He will be back in court next month, with a full extradition hearing scheduled for February.

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement. We are pleased that, after months of investigations and, along with Lord Austin, correspondence with police and the criminal justice authorities, he has now finally been caught. We will continue to do everything within our power to ensure that he is extradited and serves his sentence in France.”

, ,

Lufthansa reportedly pays Jewish passengers barred from flying £16,000 

Lufthansa is reportedly paying £16,000 to each Jewish passenger who was barred from boarding one of its flights earlier this year.

The airline had previously apologised after apparently barring all visibly Jewish passengers from a flight due to a mask dispute with a few passengers who happened to be Jewish.

It was reported that there was a dispute between staff managing the boarding of flight LH1334 from Frankfurt to Budapest on 4th May and some visibly Jewish passengers, reportedly over the wearing of masks. The pilot then apparently decided that no visibly Jewish passengers were to be allowed on to the flight, regardless of whether they were part of the same group or were prepared to wear a mask.

A video was recorded appearing to show a member of the airline’s ground staff explaining to a passenger that he was being prevented from boarding because he was Jewish.

The Jewish passengers were predominantly American and many had flown from New York in order to visit the grave of a Hasidic rabbi. Around 100 passengers were affected.

The German airline apologised and said that it was investigating the incident, which has caused an uproar in the Jewish world.

In a statement, the airline said: “Although we are not commenting on the details, we can confirm that Lufthansa endeavors to settle the claims with all of the passengers denied boarding on 4th May, 2022.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

, , , ,

Fugitive French Holocaust denier Vincent Reynouard appears in court in Edinburgh

A notorious French Holocaust denier living in Britain appeared today in Edinburgh Sheriff Court, following his arrest by Police Scotland officers in Anstruther last week.

The arrest of Vincent Reynouard, 53, came after he spent two years on the run.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

According to far-right activist Fabrice Jérôme Bourbon — who was himself convicted in December 2021 in connection with denial of war crimes and defending Hervé Ryssen and fined €8,000 — Mr Reynouard was visited by local police and Interpol on 25th October 2021.

Mr Bourbon elaborated in his far-right weekly magazine, Rivarol, claiming that police and Interpol visited Mr Reynouard’s flat at the time, believed to be in Kent, at around 16:00 in order to apprehend him and potentially initiate extradition proceedings. Mr Reynouard allegedly concealed his identity and fled the scene, remaining at large.

Last week, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice. We are delighted that he has finally been caught.

Scottish police reportedly arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France.

Today the court heard that Mr Reynouard has been granted legal aid. He will be back in court next month, with a full extradition hearing scheduled for February.

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement. We are pleased that, after months of investigations and, along with Lord Austin, correspondence with police and the criminal justice authorities, he has now finally been caught. We will continue to do everything within our power to ensure that he is extradited and serves his sentence in France.”

,

Belgian court refuses to extradite radical imam who fled France to escape deportation

A Belgian court has refused to extradite a radical imam who fled France to escape deportation.

Hassan Iquioussen, an imam with a history of making inflammatory comments about Jews, was arrested in Belgium in September pursuant to a European arrest warrant that was issued after he went on the run in the wake of a court ruling in France permitting the French Government to deport him.

This week, a Belgian court upheld a ruling dismissing a request from France for Mr Iquioussen’s extradition.

The decision is the latest episode in the saga of Mr Iquioussen’s deportation. Previously, the French authorities struggled to persuade French courts to permit them to deport the imam. The French Government even vowed to change the law in order to be able to deport him, but that became no longer necessary after a decision from France’s Conseil d’Etat, the supreme court for administrative justice, which overturned a previous ruling that suspended Mr Iquioussen’s deportation order.

That final decision rejected the claims of Mr Iquioussen’s defence that deporting the imam to Morocco would not be a disproportionate interference with his right to lead a normal previous and family life.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who has previously said that Mr Iquioussen is an enemy of France who had “no place” in the country, hailed the decision as “a big victory for the Republic,” adding of the imam: “He will be deported from national soil.”

The imam then fled France and was found in Belgium, where he currently remains.

Mr Iquioussen is a Moroccan citizen who has lived in France all his life but who has become a symbol of President Emmanuel Macron’s battle against Islamism, whom the President accuses of rejecting French laws and values. He did not take up French citizenship at a younger age and his attempts to do so since then have failed.

During the court hearings, prosecutors highlighted statements allegedly made by Mr Iquioussen in 2003 and 2004 in which he described Jews as “miserly usurers” and claimed that Zionists had “connived with Hitler…to push Jews to leave Germany”. He also reportedly said: “The Zionists said…there has to be someone in Europe who does bad things to Jews so that they…will leave [for Israel].” They also noted a conference in 2012 at which Mr Iquioussen allegedly described terrorist attacks in the West as “pseudo-attacks whose objective is to frighten non-Muslims so that they are afraid of Islam and of Muslims,” and claimed that he has also publicly denied the 1915 Armenian genocide and pointed to allegedly misogynistic comments.

In a post on Facebook, Mr Iquioussen “strongly contested” the allegations that he had used “discriminatory or violent language.” His supporters argue that the comments cited in the case were dated and taken out of context, and pointed to other statements by the imam, such as: “We have never had, and have, nothing against Jews because Islam is a religion based on justice.”

Mr Iquioussen had said that he was considering an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, before fleeing the jurisdiction.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France, Belgium and throughout Europe.

, , , ,

Fugitive French Holocaust denier finally arrested in Scotland following appeals from CAA and Lord Austin

A notorious French Holocaust denier living in Britain, who was convicted by the French courts last year, has been arrested near Edinburgh after spending two years on the run.

Vincent Reynouard, 53, was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

According to far-right activist Fabrice Jérôme Bourbon — who was himself convicted in December 2021 in connection with denial of war crimes and defending Hervé Ryssen and fined €8,000 — Mr Reynouard was visited by local police and Interpol on 25th October 2021.

Mr Bourbon elaborated in his far-right weekly magazine, Rivarol, claiming that police and Interpol visited Mr Reynouard’s flat at the time, believed to be in Kent, at around 16:00 in order to apprehend him and potentially initiate extradition proceedings. Mr Reynouard allegedly concealed his identity and fled the scene, remaining at large.

On 11th November 2022, he was finally arrested in Fife, near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice. We are delighted that he has finally been caught.

Scottish police reportedly arrested him in his hotel room in the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France. He is being held pending a further hearing. French authorities are anxious to ensure his return to France to serve his sentence.

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

General Jean-Philippe Reiland of the OCLCH said: “Vincent Reynouard was able to be arrested thanks to a huge effort of international cooperation, and in particular thanks to our British counterparts. Despite the legal difficulties that may exist, the Office will not let go of the ideologues who propagate hatred, wherever they are,”

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement. We are pleased that, after months of investigations and, along with Lord Austin, correspondence with police and the criminal justice authorities, he has now finally been caught. We will continue to do everything within our power to ensure that he is extradited and serves his sentence in France.”

, , ,

Antisemitic hate preacher David Icke banned from entering several European countries

The antisemitic hate preacher and conspiracy theorist David Icke has been banned from entering several European countries.

The two-year ban came prior to a planned demonstration in Amsterdam, which was scheduled to have taken place this Sunday, after Dutch immigration authorities told Mr Icke that “there are concrete indications that your arrival in the Netherlands poses a threat to public order.”

Following his ban, the rally was reportedly cancelled by the organisers.

Mr Icke’s ban reportedly includes 25 other countries due to it also applying to the EU’s visa-free Schengen area.

Last month, the organisers of the demonstration were called upon by Amsterdam’s mayor, police and prosecutor’s office to disinvite Mr Icke due to his “antisemitic and hurtful statements”.

In a video response uploaded to his website, Mr Icke said that he was “demonised” by “ultra-Zionist organisations”.

Mr Icke uses social media, his books and his stage performances to incite hatred. His preaching is so absurd that since the 1990s he has been dismissed as a crank, but because he is dismissed, there has been no major opposition to him and he has built up a following of thousands upon thousands of disciples whom he has persuaded to adamantly believe that the world is in the grip of a conspiracy run by the “Rothschild Zionists”. His repertoire includes conspiracy myths and tropes classified as antisemitic according to the International Definition of Antisemitism, adopted by the British Government. Campaign Against Antisemitism has successfully persuaded some venues to pull out of hosting his events.

After years of pressure from Campaign Against Antisemitism, Mr Icke was banned from most social media platforms.

,

New report shows five antisemitic incidents a day reported in Germany

Germany’s Federal authorities have disclosed that 1,555 antisemitic incidents – including 55 classified as “violent” –  were reported in 2022, according to data gathered by the Federal Criminal Police.

While the figure, revealing an average of five antisemitic incidents each day during 2022, is significantly lower than the total of 3,028 antisemitic incidents recorded in 2021, the 2021 numbers were a third higher than 2020 and inflated by more than 1,000 incidents occurring during the conflict between Israel and the genocidal antisemitic terrorist group Hamas.

Following the publication of last year’s statistics, the Head of Germany’s domestic intelligence service (BfV), Thomas Haldenwang, warned that the reported incidents were only the “tip of the iceberg.”

The 2022 data reveals the 1,500 antisemitic incidents not classified as “violent” included incitement to hatred and displaying the symbols of proscribed far-right and neo-Nazi organisations. Some 936 suspects have been identified, but no arrest warrants have been issued.

The Federal Criminal Police Office pointed out that the figures released on Wednesday were “provisional.” According to a major German news outlet, the numbers for the first quarter of this year have already been revised upwards, from an original figure of 459 antisemitic crimes recorded to a new total of 683.

Petra Pau, the Vice-President of the Bundestag, Germany’s parliament, expressed frustration with the data-gathering process, saying: “In view of the general increase in antisemitism, I would wish for the correct recording to be carried out more quickly.”

Ms Pau said that “only then” could politicians and the authorities “recognise threatening developments in a timely manner.”

A statement from the Central Council of German Jews said that it was disturbed by the data with council President, Josef Schuster, noting that “in times of crisis, Jews often have to serve as scapegoats.”

Mr Schuster also referenced controversies involving antisemitism in the German art world, observing that there had been “a paradigm shift” that had led to antisemitic tropes being seen more often. He said that “classic antisemitic images” as well as anti-Zionist imagery helped to “legitimise antisemitic violence” in Germany.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

Neo-Nazis arrested over alleged antisemitic hate crimes in Spain

The Spanish Guardia Civil (Civil Guard) has arrested three neo-Nazis on suspicion of committing antisemitic hate crimes.

The three – two men and a woman aged between 36 and 42 – have been charged with seven hate crimes and are thought to be behind a campaign of vandalism that targeted the Burgos village of Castrillo Mota de Judíos and sites of  Jewish significance in Madrid.

During searches of the three suspects’ Madrid homes, the Guardia Civil found tasers and air pistols as well as books extolling Nazism and material such as pamphlets emblazoned with swastikas and Hitler’s face.

The three, who are believed to be part of a right-wing extremist group, have been charged with multiple acts of vandalism in the town of Castrillo Mota de Judíos, including antisemitic and neo-fascist graffiti, setting fire to rubbish containers and trying to burn an Israeli flag.

Until 2015, the town which has a population of just 50, was known as Castrillo Mota de Judíos which translates roughly as  “Kill Jews village” or “Fort Kill The Jews.” The town now promotes its historical connection with the Jewish community resulting in frequent acts of vandalism and antisemitic hate perpetrated by neo-Nazi gangs. The Guardia Civil said this “climate of violence” was threatening and had sparked “feelings of insecurity and fear” in the inhabitants.  

The trio’s alleged campaign of antisemitic vandalism and criminal damage – which reportedly included the Jewish areas of two Madrid cemeteries – began in December 2021 with antisemitic graffiti targeting the Mayor of Burgos, Alderman Lorenzo Rodríguez, saying he had “sold out to the murderous Jew.”

The activities of the right-wing group were already being monitored before the campaign had started.

Following incidents of antisemitic vandalism including at a synagogue and in the Madrid cemeteries, authorities deployed surveillance equipment and discovered that the graffiti had the same perpetrator. This led to the arrest of the three.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Following deadly shooting at LGBTQ+ bar in Bratislava, details of suspect’s antisemitic manifesto emerge

Following a deadly shooting at an LGBTQ+ bar in Bratislava on Wednesday, details of the suspect’s antisemitic manifesto have emerged.

The suspected gunman, who police have said was found dead on Thursday morning, opened fire outside the bar, killing two and wounding one.  

While police have said they are trying to determine the motive of the assailant, local media are reporting that the shooter held white supremacist, antisemitic and LGBTQ+ phobic views. Additionally, police are reportedly investigating the possibility that the weapon used in the incident belonged to the gunman’s father, said to be a former candidate for a far-right party.

The suspect is alleged to have tweeted a lengthy manifesto prior to the attack, in which he spewed hate for Jews and LGBTQ+ people, alongside the hashtag “#hatecrime”. 

The manifesto, in which the suspect reportedly called for the “total eradication of all Jews”, is said to have been adorned with the Nazi sonnedrad, or sun wheel, symbol. 

The document was said to have “contained a stream of racist and antisemitic rhetoric” and the suspect reportedly praised white supremacist terrorists Brenton Tarrant and Anders Behring Breivik as “heroes and role models”.  

Local groups have organised a march this evening to honour the victims and to stand against hatred towards members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Eduard Heger, the Prime Minister of Slovakia, made a statement in which he said: “It is unacceptable that anyone should fear for their life because of the way they live,” adding: “No form of extremism is allowed.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

, ,

Far-right politician ‘danced’ on Berlin Holocaust memorial

Holger Winterstein, a member of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (Alternative for Germany) Party – known by its German acronym AfD – has been accused of ‘dancing’ on the country’s Holocaust memorial.

Ron Prosor, Israel’s ambassador to Germany, tweeted a photograph of Mr Winterstein on the Memorial, labelling the action ‘shameful’.

Mr Prosor said: “Mr. Winterstein, everyone is watching you dance while you bring shame on yourself and your party. Enjoy your shameful minute of fame because your name will soon be forgotten.

“The sanctified souls commemorated at the memorial will never be forgotten.”

AfD described Mr Winterstein’s behaviour as “extremely disrespectful.”

In the image posted on social media, Mr Winterstein was seen standing with outstretched arms and with one foot slightly raised on one of the stone slabs that form the memorial in Berlin for the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis.

Mr Winterstein is a representative of the party in Thuringia. In 2018, the party’s leader in the state, Bjoern Hoecke, said the Memorial was a “monument of shame” and called for Germany to perform a “180-degree turn” over how it remembered its past. A party tribunal rejected a bid to have him expelled.

Last year, a survey conducted by polling firm Forsa on behalf of the Central Council of Jews in Germany showed that almost a third (30%) of Germans agreed that Jews exploit German guilty over the Holocaust to “derive an advantage”. The figure rose to 59% of supporters of the AfD.

More than one in five (21%) respondents agreed with the suggestion that Israeli policies mirrored those of Nazi Germany, a direct reference to the International Definition of Antisemitism. This rose to 32% among AfD supporters.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

,

German police investigate synagogue stone-throwing

Police in the German city of Hanover are investigating after a synagogue’s stained-glass window was damaged on Yom Kippur.

The window in the women’s gallery was reportedly damaged by a stone at around 19:00, close to the conclusion of the Yom Kippur service.

There were no injuries among the 150 congregants.

A police spokesperson confirmed that the window had been damaged but said that the cause had “not yet been clarified.”

The congregation’s Chairman Michael Fürst said that the perpetrator “must have entered the synagogue grounds”.

Mr Fürst added that he was “deeply shocked” by the incident.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

, , , ,

“They need to see zero tolerance towards antisemitism”: Rabbi Menachem Margolin on what European countries must do to ensure Jewish life

Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the Chairman and founder of the European Jewish Association (EJA), an organisation that promotes and defends Jewish interests in Europe, a large part of which involves raising awareness of, and tackling, antisemitism, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about the EJA’s first-of-its-kind index which polled the best European countries for Jews to live in.

When asked if he was surprised that the report ranked Italy and Hungary as the top two countries for Jews to live in, while Poland, Belgium and France came out bottom, he said that he was not.

“What is important is not what the media says” he said. “We have to concentrate on what is important for Jewish life.”

Rabbi Margolin said that in the case of Hungary, he noticed “a renaissance of Jewish life” taking place, noting the country’s growth of synagogues as an indicator.

Rabbi Margolin said that he hoped that world leaders would take notice of the findings and that they would back up any promises to enhance Jewish life with actions. 

“The action,” he explained, “is providing the Jewish communities the conditions they need to grow. They need security, they need freedom of religion, they need support, they need to see zero tolerance towards antisemitism, they need to see the government is really committed to combating antisemitism, they would like to see governments treat Israel in a fair way; not with double standards.”

Throughout the interview, Rabbi Margolin touched upon a variety of other issues which included the rise of antisemitism in the United States and his advice for tackling antisemitism.

The podcast with Rabbi Margolin can be listened to here, or watched here.

Podcast Against Antisemitism, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, talks to a different guest about antisemitism each week. It streams every Thursday and is available through all major podcast apps and YouTube. You can also subscribe to have new episodes sent straight to your inbox.

Previous guests have included comedian David Baddiel, television personality Robert Rinder, writer Eve Barlow, Grammy-Award-winning singer-songwriter Autumn Rowe, and actor Eddie Marsan.

,

New poll shows one in three Germans say Israel acts like Nazis, in breach of International Definition of Antisemitism

A new poll has revealed that one in three Germans believe that Israel acts like the Nazis.

Bertelsmann Stiftung, an independent German foundation, surveyed thousands of Israelis and Germans to explore relations between the countries, but also examined antisemitic views among the German public.

To the statement, “What the State of Israel is doing to the Palestinians today is in principle no different than what the Nazis in the Third Reich did to the Jews,” 36 percent of respondents said that they agreed or strongly agreed. A further quarter of those polled said that they did not know, leaving only 40 percent who disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

Responding to another question, 24 percent of Germans polled said that Jews have too much influence in the world, whereas 62 percent disagreed, with the balance saying that they did not know.

The survey also, however, found that a large majority of 82 percent agreed with the statement that “Jews naturally belong in Germany”, while 13 percent disagreed and 5 percent said that they did not know.

With regard to the statement that Germany “has a special responsibility for the Jewish people,” 58 percent of Israelis agreed or strongly agreed compared to only 35 percent of Germans, while 25 percent of Israelis and 33 percent of Germans said that they “partly agree”. 31 percent of Germans and 11 percent of Israelis disagreed or strongly disagreed.

Asked about the statement, “Almost 80 years after the end of the Second World War, we should no longer talk so much about the persecution of the Jews under the Nazis, but finally put the past behind us,” 49 percent of Germans agreed while only fourteen percent of Israelis did. 33 percent of Germans and 60 percent of Israelis disagreed. The rest were undecided.

The study reportedly found a correlation between lower levels of formal education levels and prejudices against Jews.

The research was conducted in 2021 but only released last week.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Two car registration plates incorporating Nazi references spotted in Belgium

It has been reported that two personalised vehicle registration plates incorporating Nazi references have been observed in Belgium.

One plate reportedly included the digits “HH-88”, alluding to the phrase “Heil Hitler”, “H” being the eighth letter of the alphabet.

Another had the phrase “1-RAS-88”, a reference to the phrase “Een ras”, meaning “one race”.

UNIA, the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism in Belgium, observed that “it is highly unlikely that this choice of the plate was a coincidence, especially considering the €1,000 fee that the person paid for.”

The Department of Vehicles Registration (DIV) was reprotedly contacted by UNIA but declined to deregister the plates, apparently claiming that the “88” on the second plate referred to “the year the applicant was born” and that the owner assured them that there was no intention of racism nor was offence intended. UNIA was justifiably unpersuaded.

The Minister of Mobility reportedly responded to UNIA agreeing that the response was “schooling” but that “the current legislation does not allow the automatic cancellation of a licence plate already in circulation. If a plate is not on the DIV’s black list, there is currently little the authorities can do.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Radical French imam goes on the run after court rules he can be deported

A European arrest warrant has been issued for a radical imam who has a history of making inflammatory comments about Jews, after the imam went on the run following a court ruling last week permitting the French Government to deport him.

Earlier this month, the Government vowed to change the law in order to be able to deport the imam, but this is no longer necessary after the decision from the Conseil d’Etat, the supreme court for administrative justice, which overturned a previous ruling that suspended Hassan Iquioussen’s deportation order.

The new decision rejected the claims of Mr Iquioussen’s defence that deporting the imam to Morocco would not be a disproportionate interference with his right to lead a normal previous and family life.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who has previously said that Mr Iquioussen is an enemy of France who had “no place” in the country, hailed the decision as “a big victory for the Republic,” adding of the imam: “He will be deported from national soil.”

Mr Iquioussen, 59, is a Moroccan citizen who has lived in France all his life but who has become a symbol of President Emmanuel Macron’s battle against Islamism, whom the President accuses of rejecting French laws and values. He did not take up French citizenship at a younger age and his attempts to do so since then have failed.

Morocco already delivered a laissez-passer to authorise his travel, which cleared the way for Mr Iquioussen’s expulsion “by force”, but the imam won an injunction halting his deportation at the Paris Administrative Court, which ruled that the expulsion was a “disproportionate infringement…of [Iquioussen’s] right to a private and family life.” Mr Iquioussen has five children and numerous grandchildren in France.

During the previous court hearing, prosecutors highlighted statements allegedly made by Mr Iquioussen in 2003 and 2004 in which he described Jews as “miserly usurers” and claimed that Zionists had “connived with Hitler…to push Jews to leave Germany”. He also reportedly said: “The Zionists said…there has to be someone in Europe who does bad things to Jews so that they…will leave [for Israel].” They also noted a conference in 2012 at which Mr Iquioussen allegedly described terrorist attacks in the West as “pseudo-attacks whose objective is to frighten non-Muslims so that they are afraid of Islam and of Muslims,” and claimed that he has also publicly denied the 1915 Armenian genocide and pointed to allegedly misogynistic comments.

In a post on Facebook, Mr Iquioussen “strongly contested” the allegations that he had used “discriminatory or violent language.” His supporters argue that the comments cited in the case were dated and taken out of context, and pointed to other statements by the imam, such as: “We have never had, and have, nothing against Jews because Islam is a religion based on justice.”

Following the latest decision, Mr Iquioussen’s says that he is considering an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

Court rules radical imam with history of inflammatory comments about Jews can be expelled

A court has ruled that the French Government can after all expel a radical imam with a history of making inflammatory comments about Jews.

Earlier this month, the Government vowed to change the law in order to be able to deport the imam, but this may now not be necessary after this decision from the Conseil d’Etat, the supreme court for administrative justice, which overturns a previous ruling that suspended Hassan Iquioussen’s deportation order.

The new decision rejected the claims of Mr Iquioussen’s defence that deporting the imam to Morocco would not be a disproportionate interference with his right to lead a normal previous and family life.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who has previously said that Mr Iquioussen is an enemy of France who had “no place” in the country, hailed the decision as “a big victory for the Republic,” adding of the imam: “He will be deported from national soil.”

Mr Iquioussen, 59, is a Moroccan citizen who has lived in France all his life and has become a symbol of President Emmanuel Macron’s battle against Islamism, whom the President accuses of rejecting French laws and values. He did not take up French citizenship at a younger age and his attempts to do so since then have failed.

Morocco already delivered a laissez-passer to authorise his travel, which cleared the way for Mr Iquioussen’s expulsion “by force”, but the imam won an injunction halting his deportation at the Paris Administrative Court, which ruled that the expulsion was a “disproportionate infringement…of [Iquioussen’s] right to a private and family life.” Mr Iquioussen has five children and numerous grandchildren in France.

During the previous court hearing, prosecutors highlighted statements allegedly made by Mr Iquioussen in 2003 and 2004 in which he described Jews as “miserly usurers” and claimed that Zionists had “connived with Hitler…to push Jews to leave Germany”. He also reportedly said: “The Zionists said…there has to be someone in Europe who does bad things to Jews so that they…will leave [for Israel].” They also noted a conference in 2012 at which Mr Iquioussen allegedly described terrorist attacks in the West as “pseudo-attacks whose objective is to frighten non-Muslims so that they are afraid of Islam and of Muslims,” and claimed that he has also publicly denied the 1915 Armenian genocide and pointed to allegedly misogynistic comments.

In a post on Facebook, Mr Iquioussen “strongly contested” the allegations that he had used “discriminatory or violent language.” His supporters argue that the comments cited in the case were dated and taken out of context, and pointed to other statements by the imam, such as: “We have never had, and have, nothing against Jews because Islam is a religion based on justice.”

Following the latest decision, Mr Iquioussen’s says that he is considering an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

French authorities hastily rule out antisemitic motive after yet another Jewish person reported murdered

Following the graphic reports of the murder of a French Jewish man by his Muslim roommate, authorities have already ruled out an antisemitic motive.

Eyal Haddad, 34, from the town of Longperrier, north-east of Paris, was reportedly murdered on 20th August.

The alleged perpetrator has been identified as Mohamed Dridi, 22, who is said to have used an axe to attack his victim before burning the victim’s face and attempting to bury the body.

In response to the news, Jewish groups asked that when the authorities investigate, they should do so by “considering the antisemitic character [of the allegations] and not dismissing it a priori” and “investigate and shed light on the true motives of [Mr Haddad’s] killer.”

The International Affairs Advisor to the European Parliament, Manel Msalmim tweeted: “It is not the first time that a Jew is murdered by his neighbour. We condemn this barbaric and criminal act and we call for justice for Eyal.”

However, on 30th August, it was reported that following authorities’ initial investigations, it has been decided that there was no antisemitic intent.

The authorities’ decision arrives despite the suspect allegedly turning himself in to the police and confessing that his motivation was because he was owed 100 euros and because the victim was Jewish.

There have also been claims in the French Jewish media that the suspect had made Islamist comments on social media in the days before the killing.

2022 has seen two other instances of Jewish people being killed in alleged antisemitic attacks.

In February, Jeremy Cohen, 31, was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram. At first, Mr Cohen’s death was treated as a traffic accident, until video footage released by the family appeared to show a group of men attacking Mr Cohen, prompting him to flee for safety without noticing the tram. He was then taken to hospital but did not survive his injuries.

Mr Cohen is believed to have been wearing his kippah, or skullcap, during the attack, and the family have now called upon the police to reopen the investigation into his death as they feel his visible Jewish identity played a role in his attackers’ motivation.

It was reportedly only when the family started asking questions, handing out fliers in post boxes throughout the neighbourhood and urging witnesses to come forward, that someone eventually came forward with the crucial video footage that showed that the victim was being attacked moments before his death.

In April, two men, reported to be aged 27 and 23, were charged with causing Mr Cohen’s death. However, the public prosecutor denied there was enough evidence to “establish the discriminatory nature of the attack.”

The next month, Rene Hadjaj, 90, was allegedly defenestrated from an apartment block in Lyon. Mr Hadjaj’s neighbour, 51, was arrested in connection with the event.

Police said that the incident related to an argument between the two and was not connected to the victim’s Jewish identity, and ruled out an antisemitic motive. This decision elicited outrage from parts of the French community.

A few days later, however, it was announced that the investigation was to be extended following new information that was discovered on social media arising from investigations carried out by concerned members of the Jewish community.

These incidents followed the well-publicised death of Sarah Halimi, a 65-year-old Jewish woman who was murdered by her Muslim neighbour, Kobili Traoré, 27, who tortured her before pushing her out of a window to her death.

Mr Traoré was said to have yelled “Allah Akbar,” “I killed the shaitan,” which is an Arabic word for ‘devil’ or ‘demon’, along with antisemitic vitriol. It took time for the police to recognise the antisemitic motive, but Mr Traoré was deemed unfit to stand trial because he was under the influence of drugs at the time. The judgement was highly controversial and let to protests around the world – including a rally outside the French embassy in London organised by Campaign Against Antisemitism – and a parliamentary inquiry.

However, in June 2021, it was announced that a French Parliamentary commission of inquiry would be established in order to investigate Ms Halimi’s death.

Ms Halimi’s death is a well-known case, but it is not the only instance of this kind. In 2018, 85-year-old Mireille Knoll, a Holocaust survivor, was stabbed eleven times during a botched robbery that also saw her body set alight in an effort by the perpetrators to burn her apartment. In this instance, the authorities did accept that there was an antisemitic motive and the perpetrators were jailed.

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed.

,

Italian politician suspended for Holocaust joke

An Italian politician has been suspended by his party after he made what appeared to be jokes about the Holocaust.

Councillor Giorgio Longobardi, who represents Naples for the Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy) Party, joked that the rival Democratic Party wanted to show Holocaust films, including Schindler’s List, Anne Frank’s Diary, The Pianist, and Life is Beautiful, on television prior to the upcoming general election, which would be, he claimed, “interspersed with insights and testimonies from Holocaust survivors”.

Mr Longobardi later defended himself, releasing a statement which said that the councillor has “never made fun of the tragedy of the Holocaust” and his comments were “aimed only at highlighting the means that the left uses in the electoral campaign.”

A joint statement released by the Italy-Israel Federation and Naples’s Jewish community said that Mr Longobardi’s comments were “offensive to the memory of six million Jews” and accused the councillor of at one point “plaster[ing] his office” with posters praising Benito Mussolini, Italy’s former fascist dictator.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism incidents in Italy which have markedly increased according to a recent report.

,

Over one in eight Jews flee Russia since invasion of Ukraine, eliciting crackdown on Jewish Agency reminiscent of Soviet era

Over one in eight Jewish Russians have emigrated since the country invaded Ukraine, according to the Jewish Agency, which facilitates Jewish immigration to Israel.

The sizeable migration has elicited a crackdown by the Russian Government on the Jewish Agency reminiscent to some of antisemitic persecution of Jews by the Soviet Union and restrictions on Jewish immigration.

The Jewish Agency estimates that 20,500 Russian Jews of an estimated total of 165,000 have moved to Israel, with thousands more leaving for other countries.

Even the Chief Rabbi of Moscow, Pinchas Goldschmidt, left the country two weeks after the invasion.

Anna Shternshis, Professor of Yiddish studies at Toronto University and a specialist in Russian-Jewish history who was herself born and raised in Russia, told the BBC: “I have been thinking quite a bit about why there is such a rush to go because we are not seeing a huge surge of antiseemitism. But then putting my historian hat on, I see that every time something happens in Russia, some upheaval, some change, Jews are always in danger.” Referencing over a century of recent Russian antisemitism, she said that “Not everyone acts on it, but every Jew in Russia today is thinking about this.”

One Russian Jew also recounted in dismay: “After 24th February, my family realised we were absolutely against this war but we did not know how we could protest. One of my children is the age of military service, so that is another reason we want to go. The authorities in Russia are unpredictable and they have a bad tendency; Jews become one of their propaganda targets, we are traditionally a good way to find internal enemies. My great-grandparents and grandparents suffered from those times.”

For those Russian Jews wishing to leave in anticipation of a possible rise in antisemitism, the shuttering of the Jewish Agency in Russia is alarming. The same individual said: “All of a sudden we see that on the news, and we wonder what is next? We feel very unsafe and we think could we lose our jobs, or go to jail. Things have become very scary.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

, ,

German Chancellor “disgusted” by Palestinian Authority President’s remarks diminishing the Holocaust in his visit to Berlin

The German Chancellor has condemned remarks by the President of the Palestinian Authority (PA) made while on a visit to Berlin.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas, also known by his nom de guerre, Abu Mazen, refused to condemn the horrific attack by Arab terrorists at the Munich Olympics in 1972, when they murdered eleven Israeli athletes. The fiftieth anniversary of the attack is due to be commemorated this year.

Instead of condemning the terrorist atrocity, Mr Abbas accused Israel of committing “50 Holocausts”. He said: “From 1947 to the present day, Israel has committed 50 massacres in Palestinian villages and cities, in Deir Yassin, Tantura, Kafr Qasim and many others, 50 massacres, 50 Holocausts.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who was standing next to Mr Abbas when he made his remark, later condemned it on Twitter, writing: “For us Germans in particular, any relativisation of the singularity of the Holocaust is intolerable and unacceptable. I am disgusted by the outrageous remarks made by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.”

The Israeli Prime Minister also condemned the comments, writing on Twitter: “Mahmoud Abbas accusing Israel of having committed ‘50 Holocausts’ while standing on German soil is not only a moral disgrace, but a monstrous lie. History will never forgive him.”

Decades ago, Mr Abbas argued in his faux doctoral dissertation in the Soviet Union that the Zionist movement and its leaders were “fundamental partners” of the Nazis and shared equal responsibility for the Holocaust.

The official Palestinian Authority news agency, Wafa, did not include the Holocaust comments in its report of the meeting between Mr Abbas and Mr Scholz, and the Palestinian Authority dismissed the condemnations and issued no apology.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

German tourists buying Italian Hitler wine as collectibles

German tourists are reportedly buying wine with images of Adolf Hitler as collectibles.

The wine, which has been widely known to be on sale in Italy for some time, is the work of winemaker Vini Lunardelli, who founded his winery in 1967. He has been producing wine with dictator themes since 1995. He also has labels featuring Stalin, Lenin, Che Guevara, Napoleon and Franco.

A prominent Austrian cosmetic surgeon recently brought the wines to new prominence after alleging that German and Austrian holidaymakers were travelling to Jesolo, a resort town about twenty miles from Venice, to purchase the wine.

The labels on the €8.50 bottles show Hitler with slogans such as “Mein Führer”, “Sieg Heil” and “Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Führer”.

Although there have been occasional protests over the labelling and the company’s own website observes that the wines are a “cult object among the collectors”, sale of such products is legal in Italy, even if it may be illegal in Germany and Austria.

In 2018, Andrea Gnassi, the then-Mayor of Rimini, a town elsewhere on the coast, said of the sale that his hands were tied and that attempts to press for national legislation against fascist products had been unsuccessful. He said: “We receive reports like this at least five to six times a year. As long as a new law is not approved, all attempts at [action by the municipality] can achieve nothing.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

Image credit: Vini Lunardelli

,

Spain’s Catholic Church to investigate antisemitic rituals

The Catholic Church in Spain has announced an investigation into claims made in an Israeli newspaper that some towns and villages in the country still observe rituals relating to the antisemitic “blood libel”.

The blood libel is a racist claim that Jews use the blood of Christian children in religious rituals, and has been part of Christian – and, in the modern era, also Islamic – antisemitism for centuries. It was also used to justify the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492.

According to the Haaretz newspaper, parishes in Toledo, Zaragoza and elsewhere continue to practice rituals, backed by the local churches and councils, based on the blood libel.

In Toledo, for example, the Santo Niño de La Guardia myth, which dates back to 1480, imagines that a child from the village was abducted and murdered by Jews, even though no child was reported missing at the time. Still, every September villagers carry an effigy of a child to the church where it is blessed by the clergy over the course of a five-day festival, with the child venerated as a saint.

Meanwhile, in the basilica of Zaragoza there is a chapel dedicated to a child allegedly abducted and tortured by local Jews, with a special service held on 13th October every year.

Jacob Daniel Benzaquén, the President of Spain’s Jewish communities, said: “The case of the Niño de La Guardia is especially serious because year after year the civil authorities continue to support this celebration. It’s very sad that these events continue to this day and are celebrated with such enthusiasm and a shame that the ecclesiastical authorities haven’t put an end to them, despite our requests.”

The El Confidencial news site reported that sources close to the Archbishop of Madrid have said that the church was revising “cults and rituals involving saints such as the Niño de La Guardia that refer to the legend that Jews killed Christian children in order to celebrate Passover.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

, ,

French Government vows to change law to expel radical imam with history of inflammatory comments about Jews

The French Government has vowed to change the law in order to be able to expel a radical imam with a history of inflammatory comments about Jews.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said that Hassan Iquioussen is an enemy of France who had “no place” in the country.

Mr Iquioussen, 59, is a Moroccan citizen who has lived in France all his life and has become a symbol of President Emmanuel Macron’s battle against Islamism, whom the President accuses of rejecting French laws and values. He did not take up French citizenship at a younger age and his attempts to do so since then have failed.

Morocco has reportedly delivered a laissez-passer to authorise his travel, which cleared the way for Mr Iquioussen’s expulsion “by force”, but the imam won an injunction halting his deportation at the Paris Administrative Court, which ruled that the expulsion was a “disproportionate infringement…of [Iquioussen’s] right to a private and family life.” Mr Iquioussen has five children and numerous grandchildren in France.

During last week’s court hearing, prosecutors highlighted statements allegedly made by Mr Iquioussen in 2003 and 2004 in which he described Jews as “miserly usurers” and claimed that Zionists had “connived with Hitler…to push Jews to leave Germany”. He also reportedly said: “The Zionists said…there has to be someone in Europe who does bad things to Jews so that they…will leave [for Israel].” They also noted a conference in 2012 at which Mr Iquioussen allegedly described terrorist attacks in the West as “pseudo-attacks whose objective is to frighten non-Muslims so that they are afraid of Islam and of Muslims,” and claimed that he has also publicly denied the 1915 Armenian genocide and pointed to allegedly misogynistic comments.

In a post on Facebook, Mr Iquioussen “strongly contested” the allegations that he had used “discriminatory or violent language.” His supporters argue that the comments cited in the case were dated and taken out of context, and pointed to other statements by the imam, such as: “We have never had, and have, nothing against Jews because Islam is a religion based on justice.”

Mr Darmanin has announced that the Government will appeal against the injunction at the State Council, France’s highest administrative court, and warned that if the appeal fails, he would change the law to allow for the deportation.

Confirming that intelligence agencies put Mr Iquioussen on a watchlist of allegedly dangerous radicals eighteen months ago, Mr Darmanin said: “This imam…uses antisemitic language. He denies equality between men and women. He denies genocides. He calls for terrorist attacks in France to be considered as conspiracies.” He added: “The enemies of the Republic have no place in the Republic.”

According to a report published by the French Jewish Community Security Service, antisemitic incidents in France have skyrocketed. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in France and throughout Europe.

,

Two minors sentenced in Germany for brutal assault on Jewish man after being charged with antisemitic incitement

Two minors have been sentenced in Germany following a brutal assault on a Jewish man in Hamburg last year.

The court heard how the two unnamed brothers, aged seventeen and fifteen, approached a small demonstration against antisemitism and in support of Israel in the city in September 2021. The brothers, accompanied by a female friend, reportedly shouted “f**k Israel” and “Free Palestine” and insulted the demonstrators.

They then assaulted a 61-year-old demonstrator, leaving him with broken cheekbones, smashed glasses and a damaged eye, about which the victim now says: “I’m practically blind, I can only see light and dark in my right eye.”

The assailants fled the scene on rented scooters.

The brothers were charged with antisemitic incitement, and the elder was also charged with grievous bodily harm (GBH).

The elder brother received a sixteen-month suspended sentence, along with community service and anti-violence training, while the younger brother also received a community service order.

Stefan Hensel, Hamburg’s Antisemitism Commissioner, said: “This is a is a clear sign to all antisemitic violent criminals that their actions will not remain without consequences.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

Image credit: Jorge Franganillo

,

Equality Officer of Fianna Fail’s youth wing skips visit to Jewish museum after antisemitism allegations emerge

The Equality Officer of the youth wing of a major Irish political party has skipped a visit to a Jewish museum after antisemitism allegations emerged against him.

Brian Crehan, who holds the equalities brief for Ogra Fianna Fail, did not attend a visit to the Irish Jewish Museum last month, it has emerged, after the museum was informed about an investigation into him launched following two separate complaints against him by some of his peers.

One complaint apparently relates to a photograph of Mr Crehan, when he was fourteen years old, allegedly dressed as Adolf Hitler. The Party has reportedly been aware of the image for some years since it first surfaced during internal elections.

Mr Crehan, who organised the visit to the museum, has described the complaints as “misconstrued and exaggerated.”

The museum did not prevent Mr Crehan from attending, but he chose not to visit of his own accord, saying in a statement: “The Jewish Museum…contacted our Party headquarters for further details on that complaint, [but] headquarters couldn’t clarify anything due to the complaint being an ongoing investigation. I decided not to attend as I felt it could upset the people in the Jewish Museum who were kind enough to host us. I did not want to put them into a difficult position.

“I find it frustrating that these complaints have been misconstrued and exaggerated, and have upset the membership of my organisation and the people in the Jewish Museum.”

A spokesperson for Fianna Fail said: “The protocols in place for dealing with complaints are clearly established and always adhered to in circumstances where a formal complaint is made.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Ukrainian Jewish community demands former Kyiv City Council member is prosecuted over blood libel rant

The Jewish community in Ukraine has announced that it would like to see a former Deputy on Kyiv’s City Council prosecuted for promoting antisemitism.

The United Jewish Communities of Ukraine said that it hopes that Mykhailo Kovalchuk will face legal action for a Facebook post in which he claimed that “some Orthodox Jews practice ritual murder of people, most often their victims are small children, children of non-Jews (Goyim).”

Mr Kovalchuk went on to say that Jews gain “money and power over other peoples…they do not care what will happen to them after death,” before quoting from the Gospel of John in the New Testament: “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

The Jewish Community’s statement maintains that Mr Kovalchuk had violated Article 161 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, which prevents people from making “false, inhumane, demonising or stereotypical statements about Jews.”

They said that “Such statements are unacceptable in united Ukraine, and even more so during martial law and from a deputy of the city council.”

Mr Kovalchuk was a member of the centre-right Baktivshchyna Party, and entered the Kyiv City Council following the October 2020 local elections. Baktivshchyna favours Ukraine’s integration into the European Union and NATO.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

,

Bosnia and Herzegovina adopts International Definition of Antisemitism

Bosnia and Herzegovina has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.

The decision took place at both the parliamentary level and the level of the cabinet of the Presidency, and was spearheaded by Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Chairman of Parliament, Dargan Čović, and the Serb member of the Presidency Cabinet, Milorad Dodnik.

According to statistics collected over the last decade, there were estimated to be between 500 and 1000 Jews in Bosnia and Herzegovina, making up between 0.01 and 0.03 percent of a total population.

The Jewish population has seen a significant decline in recent decades, with about 1,500 Jewish people leaving the territory during the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s following the breakup of Yugoslavia.

The Head of the Cabinet of the Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tonka Krešić Gagro, said that “I am excited to adopt the IHRA working definition of antisemitism, an effort that was made by Mr Dragan Čović. For me, as a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a Jewish legacy in my family, it is a step forward for our people. It is a way to show deep respect for the millions who were murdered during the Holocaust, and to those who survived, and to preserve their legacy and remember history.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism applauds the decision, which demonstrates the Bosnian/Herzegovinian Government’s solidarity with the Jewish community at this worrying time for Jews in Europe.

Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Bosnia and Herzegovina joins a growing list of national governments and public bodies to use the Definition.

,

Vandals attack Buchenwald and Berlin Holocaust memorials in same week

Two different German memorials to the Holocaust have been attacked by vandals in one week.

At the former Nazi camp at Buchenwald, some trees that had been planted in order to honour the memory of the victims were cut down.

The trees were planted earlier in the year by the relatives of some of the victims as part of a project called “1,000 Beeches for Buchenwald”.

Though a spokesperson from the Holocaust survivors’ association, The International Auschwitz Committee, said that the incident was a “hateful and calculated demonstration of power by neo-Nazis”, the local police say that they do not have any clear information about who is responsible and the suspects remain unidentified.

At the Holocaust memorial in Berlin, Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, meanwhile, unidentified perpetrators have drawn two swastikas and written the Nazi-era phrase “Heil Hitler” (“Hail Hitler”) into one of the concrete slabs meant to represent the Jews murdered by the Nazis. The police say that, while they are currently looking for those responsible, they have not yet made any arrests.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

, , ,

Poland’s Chief Rabbi on antisemitism: “About five years ago, things became less good”

Rabbi Michael Schudrich, Poland’s current, and longest-serving, Chief Rabbi, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he discussed the revival of the Polish Jewish community and the way in which the country dealt with antisemitism following the Holocaust.

Outlining the devastating effects of the Holocaust on Polish Jewry, Rabbi Schudrich said: “September 1st, 1939. The beginning of World War Two. At that point, there are 3.5 million Jews living in Poland. The heart, the soul of the Ashkenazi world. Only five years later, ninety percent are no longer alive having been murdered by Germans and accomplices,” before adding: “That statement is so horrific, most people don’t think how many survive. Ten percent survived, that’s 350,000 Polish Jews.

“The question is, ‘Where are they?’ The vast majority of the survivors leave Poland in the 25 years after World War Two. If you want to feel safe saying the statement ‘I am a Jew,’ it made good sense to leave post-Holocaust, Soviet-occupied Communist Poland, and so most of the Jews left. But not all the Jews left and those that stayed, most of them agreed with those that left; Stay Jewish, leave Communist Poland. Stay in Communist Poland, stop being Jewish, to the extent that you often didn’t even tell your children or grandchildren.

“And so while a couple hundred thousand left, some tens of thousands stayed. Most gave up their Jewish identity, keeping the deep, dark secret of who their real identity was for fifty years…from 1939 to 1989, the fall of communism, and at that point, there was a new phenomenon; people were starting to tell their children and grandchildren, friends, colleagues neighbours, that they’re really Jewish. Since 1989, thousands of Poles have rediscovered their real Jewish roots. That’s the Jewish community of Poland today.”

Speaking on the existence of antisemitism in Poland before and after the Holocaust, he said: “It was not socially unacceptable to be an antisemite before the war. The Holocaust changed that. The only thing was, after the Holocaust, many Jews left Poland so quickly and the other ones were hiding, [Poland] never had a chance to deal with what it means to be an antisemite after the Holocaust. And so with the fall of communism in 1989, people could start to look and say ‘What role should antisemitism play in Poland today?’ 

“After 1989, with Poland once again being democratic, they were challenged with recreating the old, new Poland, meaning they kept some values from before the war and they rejected others. So out went communism, out went fascism, and for many, also, it meant rejecting antisemitism. It represented something from the bad, old Poland. It doesn’t mean everyone rejected antisemitism, it doesn’t mean there’s no antisemitism today, but it does mean that there’s less than what people expect.”

However, while Rabbi Schudrich celebrated how far the country’s Jewish community has come, and indeed, how far the country has come in accepting it, he acknowledged that antisemitism has begun to creep up again.

“Unfortunately, about five years ago, things became less good than they were before since 1989. What happened? We have to look at it within a Western world context, meaning Europe and the United States. Something happened five or six years ago where it became more acceptable, more respectable, to say antisemitic things than it was since the Holocaust. And this is something that happened very sadly not only in Poland but throughout Europe and the United States.”

Throughout the interview, Rabbi Schudrich touched upon a variety of other issues including antisemitism in Japan, where he served as the rabbi of the country’s Jewish community, as well as detailing the incidents of an antisemitic attack in which he was involved.

The podcast with Rabbi Schudrich can be listened to here, or watched here.

Podcast Against Antisemitism, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, talks to a different guest about antisemitism each week. It streams every Thursday and is available through all major podcast apps and YouTube. You can also subscribe to have new episodes sent straight to your inbox.

Previous guests have included comedian David Baddiel, television personality Robert Rinder, writer Eve Barlow, Grammy-Award-winning singer-songwriter Autumn Rowe, and actor Eddie Marsan.

, ,

Bestselling author Stephen King calls Ukrainian Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera a “great man” during prank call

The bestselling author, Stephen King, has come under fire for appearing to praise the antisemitic Second World War-era Ukrainian nationalist leader and Nazi collaborator, Stepan Bandera, who played a key role in creating the conditions that made the Holocaust possible.

This came during a phone call with someone whom Mr King believed was current Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy.

During what turned out to be a prank call organised by the Russian comedy duo, Vovan and Lexus, Mr King, who is a vocal supporter of Ukraine, appeared to call Bandera a “great man”.

Mr King compared the “flaws” of American leaders George Washington and Thomas Jefferson with Bandera’s, saying that “On the whole, I think Bandera is a great man, and you’re a great man, and Viva Ukraine.”

The duo also encouraged Mr King to offer “Zelenskyy” a role in a new film of one of Mr King’s novels, and to comment on Ukraine’s Azov Batallion, which is known to have members with neo-Nazi sympathies.

As head of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists, Stepan Bandera was responsible for drafting the Party’s “Minority Policy”, which included a line about how “Jews are to be isolated, removed from governmental positions in order to prevent sabotage…Those who are deemed necessary may only work under strict supervision and removed from their positions for slightest misconduct…Jewish assimilation is not possible.” 

During Nazi Germany’s attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941, Bandera declared that Ukraine was henceforth an independent state led by Adolf Hitler. After Bandera wrote a proclamation that included the words “Glory to the heroic German army and its Führer, Adolf Hitler”, a series of attacks broke out against and Jews and Poles.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout the world.

,

Documenta art festival director resigns over antisemitism scandal

The Director of Documenta, the quinquennial art festival held in the German city of Kassel, has resigned after the fifteenth edition of the festival displayed works that contained inflammatory references toward Jews.

Director Sabine Schormann has agreed with Documenta’s supervisory board that her contract will be terminated and an interim director will be appointed in her stead.

After months of controversy and speculation about alleged antisemitism, Documenta 15 opened in June and featured the artwork People’s Justice (2002) by the Indonesian collective, Taring Padi, which includes images of soldiers who have pigs’ heads for faces and are labelled with the word “Mossad”, the Israeli intelligence agency, and what appears to be a caricature of a visibly Jewish person with sidelocks, smoking a cigar, accompanied by symbols of the SS, the Nazi paramilitary unit, on his hat.

Jewish groups in Germany and throughout the world had expressed their concerns about Documenta 15, which has been curated by the Indonesian art collective, ruangrupa, because they included another foreign collective, the Question of Funding, which supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel, in the exhibition. Taring Padi were, however, not included in those initial complaints.

The organisers of Documenta initially placed a black drape over People’s Justice, which was later dismantled, but some Jewish groups complained that the festival’s organisers had not gone far enough to address the issue.

Antisemitic incidents in Germany have increased considerably. Campaign Against Antisemitism is reports on antisemitic incidents in Germany.

,

Five children arrested in connection with smashed Jewish graves in Istanbul

Five children have been arrested following the news that several Jewish graves had been smashed in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Turkish Chief Rabbinate said that it expects “those who carried out this vandalism to be caught as soon as possible.”

81 gravestones were desecrated in the Jewish cemetery of the Hasköy Cemetery in Beyoğlu, according to the Istanbul Governor’s office.

A statement from the Office read: “After examining security camera footage it was determined that the incident was carried out by children aged between eleven and thirteen who live close to the cemetery. 

“The suspects have been detained. The investigation into the matter continues. We send our Jewish citizens our wishes for a speedy recovery.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

,

Former German soldier with far-right beliefs sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison

A German soldier who holds far-right views has been found guilty of attempting to carry out “false flag” attacks on politicians and people in the public eye while pretending to be a Syrian refugee.

Franco Albrecht, 33, a former first lieutenant in the joint Franco-German Brigade, was sentenced to five and a half years in prison for conspiracy to commit a “serious act of violent subversion” at the higher regional court in Frankfurt.

The judge, Christoph Koller, told the court that Mr Albrecht held “right-wing extremist and ethnicist-nationalist” views and blames the supposed “disintegration of the German nation” on politicians sympathetic to refugees.

The investigation showed that Mr Albrecht owned a copy of Adolf Hitler’s notorious autobiographical manifesto, Mein Kampf, and thought that immigration was a kind of “genocide”.

Mr Albrecht had also posed as a Syrian Christian asylum seeker called “David Benjamin” and had registered himself under that name with authorities in the town of Erding, Bavaria.

It was also alleged that Mr Albrecht had visited conspiracy theorist and antisemitic hate preacher, David Icke, though it was left unclear if the two had indeed met each other.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism in Germany, which have increased considerably.

, ,

Adolf Eichmann admits devising Final Solution in newly unearthed audio

The Nazi Adolf Eichmann can be heard in newly-unearthed audio admitting having helped to devise the Final Solution.

Eichmann, a leading SS officer in the Third Reich, made the admissions in a secret interview in his adopted home of Buenos Aires, to which he fled after the war. 

The interview was conducted by the Dutch Nazi sympathiser and journalist Willem Sassen in 1957, a few years before Eichmann was captured by Israeli intelligence agents in 1960 and flown to Israel, where he stood trial and, after being found guilty, was executed.

In the audio, Eichmann is heard saying: “If we had killed 10.3 million Jews, I would say with satisfaction, ‘Good, we destroyed an enemy.’ Then we would have fulfilled our mission.” In another clip, he says: “Jews who are fit to work should be sent to work. Jews who are not fit to work must be sent to the Final Solution, period.” He added that he “did not care” whether those sent to Auschwitz lived or died.

The audio recordings, which are part of a $3 million new documentary called The Devil’s Confession, also capture Eichmann swatting a fly during the interview and describing it as having “a Jewish nature”.

Although in his trial, Eichmann claimed that he was merely a low-ranking functionary and proclaimed his innocence of the charges, in the interview audio he is open about his role, saying: “It’s a difficult thing that I am telling you and I know I will be judged for it. But I cannot tell you otherwise. It’s the truth. Why should I deny it? Nothing annoys me more than a person who later denies the things he has done.”

Part of the transcript of the interview was sold to Life magazine following Eichmann’s capture, but the quoted material was believed to be highly selective and sanitised.

Although the Israeli court had 700 pages of transcript, including corrections made by Eichmann’s own hand, he claimed that the record distorted his words and Israel’s Supreme Court did not permit the documents to be submitted in evidence. Nevertheless, during the trial Eichmann taunted the prosecutor, Gideon Hausner, to produce the original tapes, safe in the knowledge that they were protected by Nazi sympathisers. Although Hausner was offered the tapes for an exorbitant sum, the seller reportedly insisted that they not be brought to Israel until after the trial had concluded. Eventually, the tapes came into the hands of the German federal archives Koblenz, with instructions that they should be used only for academic research.

The audio was unearthed by the documentary makers after access was finally granted to the material by the German authorities.

,

Czech statistics show antisemitic incidents increased 29 percent in 2021

Statistics published by the Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic (FZO) show that antisemitism has dramatically increased in the country.

According to the data, there were 1,128 antisemitic incidents in 2021, representing a 29 percent increase on the year before.

98 percent of those incidents took place online, including threats of violence as well as approval or justifications of incitement to violence. 

The FZO said that the far-right is responsible for large numbers of these incidents, stating: “For the first time ever, the number of such registered incidents exceeded the category that includes incidents without a clear ideological background.”

With antisemitism increasing worldwide, Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on antisemitic incidents everywhere, including the Czech Republic.

,

Antisemitism in Germany increased 40 percent in 2021 with over 2,700 reported incidents

A new report has been published which shows that there were 2,738 antisemitic incidents recorded in 2021, marking a 40 percent increase from the year before.

According to the report from the Department for Research and Information on Antisemitism (RIAS), a Berlin-based monitoring institute, large numbers of these incidents can be traced to Islamist reactions to Israel’s war with the genocidal antisemitic terror group Hamas in May 2021.

RIAS’ report mentioned Israel 147 times in their 68-page report, with far-right extremists only being responsible for only seventeen percent of the recorded incidents.

RIAS researcher, Daniel Poensgen, said that “In view of the corona pandemic and the Arab-Israeli conflict, opportunity structures emerged in which people considered it legitimate to articulate their antisemitic attitudes even more openly and to attack Jews and show hostility toward Jews.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on antisemitic incidents in Germany, which have risen considerably.

,

Norwegian Jews plan petition to change law about working on religious holidays

Jews in Norway are planning to send a petition to their Supreme Court in an attempt to get Jewish holidays recognised by the national calendar system.

The current law states that all employees have a guaranteed twelve days of annual leave and most of this time has some connection with a Christian holiday. Non-Christians are, however, allowed an extra two days of paid leave that can be taken whenever they choose.

Jewish groups have noted that this system is unfair to Jews who work in the public sector, who are sometimes forced to work on Jewish holidays, or choose between one festival to miss or another.

These groups argue that this violates part of the Norwegian constitution, which guarantees free religious practice, though this applies primarily to Jews who work in the public sector, since some private companies tend to be better at meeting the needs of their religious employees.

The petition comes at the same time as the Liberal Party of Norway’s youth movement published a position calling for all employees to be given the choice of when they take twelve days off, regardless of those days’ connection to the Christian calendar.

The former leader of the Jewish Community in Oslo, and board trustee, Ervin Kohn, said that the Liberal Party’s proposal may solve the problem, but that “it is important that we as a society have common public holidays”.

,

Luxembourg sees antisemitic incidents rise 64 percent in one year

The Luxembourg-based charity, Research and Information on Antisemitism in Luxembourg (RIAL), has reported new statistics showing that antisemitic incidents have risen by 64 percent in the last year.

The group recorded 80 antisemitic incidents in 2021, including harassment, damage to Jewish cemeteries, and online abuse. The total recorded the previous year was 64, with cases doubling since 2019 and 30 reports received in 2022 so far.

RIAL said that some of these incidents were based on coronavirus conspiracy theories, with some comparing the government’s response to the pandemic to the Nazis and the Holocaust, while others turned to antisemitism to explain or justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

There are approximately 1,200 Jews in Luxembourg, making up under 0.19% of a total population of over 645,000.

,

Polish websites found to be selling mugs displaying grotesque antisemitic stereotypes

Jewish groups have expressed their outrage at a number of Polish websites that have been found to be selling mugs featuring a well-known antisemitic image.

The mugs display caricatures of Jews with hunched shoulders and grotesque hooked noses who smirk malevolently while rubbing their hands. Critics have been quick to point out that they look similar to the well-known antisemitic “smirking merchant” meme.

The mugs are being sold in order to promote Teodor Jeske-Choiński’s book Poznaj Żyda (Meet the Jew), which describes Jews as a “parasitic tribe”.

First published in 1912, the book is now coming out in a new edition published by far-right media group Magna Polonia. The front cover of this new edition depicts this stereotyped Jewish figure in numerous forms, including a communist, a journalist, and an activist for LGBTQ rights, suggesting that a sinister cabal of Jews are secretly working behind the scenes in these ways, which is a classic antisemitic canard.

With antisemitism increasing worldwide, Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on antisemitic incidents globally.

,

101-year-old former SS guard jailed for five years

A 101-year-old man who served as an SS guard has been jailed for five years in Germany. 

‘SS’, the abbreviation of Schutzstaffel, was the leading paramilitary organisation under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party.

The unnamed man, who was convicted of 3,518 counts of accessory to murder at Sachsenhausen concentration camp, denied his role as an SS guard and insisted that he had been a farm labourer during the time period in question.

The trial at Brandenburg’s Landgericht Neuruppin court lasted nine months, partially owing to the fact that the defendant was only able to attend sessions for a maximum of two-and-a-half hours each day due to his age. 

Judge Udo Lechtermann said: “The court has come to the conclusion that, contrary to what you claim, you worked in the concentration camp as a guard for about three years. 

“You willingly supported this mass extermination with your activity.”

In March, Dr Efraim Zuroff, the Chief Nazi Hunter at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, appeared on Podcast Against Antisemitism where he discussed the trial, calling it “an important reminder of the terror of the camp”.

He added: “Every generation needs its own reminders and the passage of time in no way diminishes the guilt of the killers.

“What people have to remember is today they look old and frail but when they committed these crimes they were young people full of energy and they devoted all their energy to murder innocent men, women and children simply because they were Jews or other enemies of the Reich.”

,

Auschwitz Museum accuses Russia of using fake Auschwitz images for propaganda

The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Poland has accused Russia of posting images of the Nazi death camp for propaganda purposes.

Museum authorities have argued that a Russian agency has used fake images from Auschwitz, using the Holocaust as a way of giving credence to the unfounded claim that there is a genocide being committed against ethnic Russians in Ukraine.

The Russian Arms Control Delegation in Vienna, an organisation which claims to be the Delegation to the Negotiations on Military Security and Arms Control based in the Austrian capital but is actually considered to be a media disinformation arm of The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, tweeted that there are labels in Auschwitz that say “Russia and Russians, we hate you. The only gas you and your country deserve is Zyclone B [sic]”. 

The Auschwitz Museum responded with a tweet which said that the pictures were “gross propaganda” that “strengthens theories about the need for denazification of Ukraine”.

This is not the first time that Russia has invoked the history of Nazism and the Holocaust since its invasion of Ukraine. In May, the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, outrageously claimed that Hitler had “Jewish origins” and accused Jews themselves of being the primary source of antisemitism.

In January, the Director of the Auschwitz-Birkeneau State Museum, Piotr Cywiński, appeared on Podcast Against Antisemitism and explained why the Museum is so important in preserving the memory of the Holocaust and the lessons that we must take away from it. 

With antisemitism increasing worldwide, Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on antisemitic incidents globally.

We are seeking to recruit a General Counsel a Video and Content Creator to join our London office

Join the fight

Subscribe
Volunteer
Donate

Campaign Against Antisemitism is a volunteer-led charity dedicated to exposing and countering antisemitism through education and zero-tolerance enforcement of the law. Everything that we do is done by people who volunteer their time, using donations contributed by members of the public. Join the fight against antisemitism by subscribing to our updates, volunteering, or donating.