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Strasbourg City Council rejects International Definition of Antisemitism wrongly claiming it stifles criticism

Strasbourg City Council has voted against adopting the International Definition of Antisemitism, despite a number of antisemitic incidents in the city during the past year.

The city councillor responsible for religious matters, Jean Werlen, of the dominant left-wing Europe Ecology Party, said that he rejected the definition because it was “out of the question to deny citizens the right to criticise a state.” This concern is widespread and entirely unfounded.

Opposition member Pierre Jakubowicz, who voted in favour of adopting the Definition, said that he was “dismayed” by the decision. “The city of Strasbourg needs this definition because in recent months there have been several notorious antisemitic acts,” said Mr Jakubowicz.

Incidents in the city have included an assault in August 2020 on a young Jewish graffiti artist, and in January of this year, the refusal from two food delivery service drivers to work with Jewish restaurants.

“We are the first democratic assembly in a European state to reject this definition,” Mr Jakubowicz lamented.

Mr Jakubowicz pointed out that the Definition had been adopted by the French National Assembly “at the urging of President Emmanuel Macron,” by the European Parliament whose seat was in Strasbourg, and by the cities of Paris and Nice.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Deliveroo courier stabs Just Eat deliveryman in antisemitic spat in Rome

Police in Rome are reportedly searching for a Deliveroo courier suspected of stabbing a fellow deliveryman in an antisemitic spat.

The incident took place outside a McDonald’s over the weekend, with the assailant reported to have ranted about the Jews as he and the other deliveryman, of Just Eat, waited. It is understood that the victim protested and the perpetrator stabbed him with a knife.

The victim was apparently left with lacerations on his face but was otherwise not seriously harmed. The assailant fled on his bicycle.

It is understood that both men are middle-aged.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Deliveroo and two delivery men in France are facing legal action  after two kosher restaurant owners in Strasbourg claimed that the delivery men had refused to deliver their food because for reasons of antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Anti-lockdown protestors in Ukraine don concentration camp uniforms

Anti-lockdown protestors in Kyiv have been seen dressed in concentration camp uniforms and donning yellow stars.

The 20th March ‘Rally For Freedom’ in the nation’s capital city was organised by the ‘Stop Fake Pandemic’ group, which claimed that more than 1,000 people participated.

The Ukrainian Jewish Committee called the use of the costumes in the protests “a cynical and shameful desecration of the victims of the Holocaust.”

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

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

Image Credit: Eduard Dolinsky (Facebook)

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Saxony legislator observes that antisemitic crimes are rising but prosecutions remain low

A legislator in the German state of Saxony has observed that, while antisemitic crimes are rising, prosecutions remain low.

Kerstin Köditz, of Die Linke (The Left Party), told journalists that 173 antisemitic crimes were recorded in 2020 – a fourth year-on-year increase – but only fourteen were successfully prosecuted.

Ms Köditz said: “The prosecution pressure is not even close to sufficient.”

She added: “One thing is clear: every act is one too many, no matter what area it comes from – hatred of Jews cannot be justified, there can be no tolerance whatsoever for antisemitism.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Antisemitic graffiti daubed on Belarus synagogue

Antisemitic graffiti has been found on a synagogue in Belarus.

A swastika and SS mark were spray-painted on to the entrance of the Jewish Community of Gomel building earlier this month.

Gomel is 200 miles south-east of Minsk, and, while the city has historically hosted many Jews, there are currently only a few hundred remaining.

There are no suspects.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

Image credit: European Jewish Congress

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Mixed picture in Austria as survey shows drop in antisemitic attitudes while social media promotes conspiracy myths and antisemitism

A new survey of antisemitism in Austria shows mixed results. While the survey suggested a significant fall in antisemitic attitudes compared with the same past surveys, it also showed a much higher level than surveys by other organisations.

The Austrian government commissioned the survey in 2020 from the Institute for Empirical Social Studies. The results were presented earlier in March.

According to the survey, 31% of the 2,000 respondents agreed with statements designed to reveal anti-Jewish bias. This compares with 46% of respondents agreeing with such statements in 2018.

However the survey still showed worrying levels of antisemitism, with study director Eva Zeglovits pointing out “a clear link between trust in social media, conspiracy myths and antisemitism.” Respondents who had greater trust in social media were more likely to agree with the statement that “reports on concentration camps and the persecution of Jews during World War II were exaggerated,” compared with those who got their news from traditional media.

Responding to a statement that “a powerful and influential elite,” such as Soros, Rothschild and Zuckerberg, was using the “corona pandemic to further expand their wealth and political influence,” 28% of the respondents feel the statement was “very correct” or “rather correct.”

Despite the slight improvement, the Government-funded survey showed a significantly higher prevalence of antisemitism than surveys by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which, in its 2019 survey for the Global 100 Index, revealed antisemitic opinions in Austria were at 20%. This was a drop from 28% in its 2014 Global 100 Index.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Local head of Turkish-Islamic association in Germany resigns after meme of US Presidents controlled by Rothschilds and other social media posts exposed

The chairman of a Turkish-Islamic association in the German city of Göttingen has resigned after antisemitic hate messages and conspiracy myths that he had allegedly posted on social media were exposed by a socialist youth organisation.

The group, Die Falken, claimed that Mustafa Keskin’s WhatsApp profile featured a meme depicting Donald Trump and Joe Biden as “old and new puppets” of investment bankers with a prominent member of the Rothschild family as the “puppet-master”.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions” is an example of antisemitism.

The youth group said that it had been “horrified” to discover that Mr Keskin was spreading antisemitic hate messages and conspiracy myths on WhatsApp and Facebook and stated on its website that this was not acceptable “for a community leader in Göttingen.”

Mr Keskin claimed that, as an interfaith leader, he had recently participated in a “Roundtable of Abrahamic Faiths” event with Jewish and Christian colleagues and that his postings were intended only as “criticisms of the Israeli government.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Fury as Ukraine names soccer stadium in honour of Nazi collaborator responsible for mass murder

A decision to name a soccer stadium in Ukraine in honour of a Nazi collaborator responsible for mass murder has provoked fury in Israel and Poland.

Joel Lion, Israel’s Ambassador to Ukraine, said that Israel strongly condemned the city of Ternopil for its decision to name the newly rebuilt stadium as the Roman Shukhevych Stadium. Mr Shukhevych was a nationalist leader who commanded a number of units that actively collaborated with the Nazis during World War II and were responsible for massacres of Jews and Poles.

On Twitter, Mr Lion wrote: “We strongly condemn the decision of Ternopil City Council to name the city stadium after the infamous Hauptman of the SS Schutzmannschaft 201…and demand the immediate cancellation of this decision.”

Meanwhile, Poland’s Ambassador to Ukraine, Bartosz Cichocki, cancelled a visit to Ternopil, making iit clear in a letter to the Council leader that his “last-minute” decision to cancel was a protest at the city’s decision.

As commander of the Nazi-controlled, Ukrainian battalion, known as Nachtigall, Mr Shukhevych was involved in the widely-documented slaughter of Jews in Lvov (now Lviv) in 1941, as well as massacres of Jews in the vicinity of Vinnytsia. Another of his military units, the UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army), was said to have massacred 100,000 Poles. He was also deputy commander of the 201st Schutzmannschaft Battalion, responsible for slaughters in Belarus.

Mr Shukhevych, who was shot in 1950 by Soviet authorities attempting to arrest him, is regarded as a hero by some Ukrainian nationalists, many of whom deny that the battalion was involved in the 1941 Lvov slaughter. In 2007, he was posthumously named “Hero of Ukraine,” the country’s highest honour.

In response to the protests, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Twitter that “preserving the national memory” of Ukrainians remained “one of the priorities of Ukraine’s state policy”, adding that “discussions in this area should be held at the level of historians” while “diplomats should work to strengthen relations of friendship and mutual respect.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Jewish community helps save Muslim-owned Halle restaurant targeted by German neo-Nazi gunman

A Muslim-owned kebab restaurant in the German city of Halle has been saved from bankruptcy by a fundraising campaign led by the Jewish community. The kebab restaurant was the site of a shooting by a neo-Nazi gunman after he failed to enter a synagogue on Yom Kippur in October 2019.

Germany’s union of Jewish students (JSUD) launched the campaign to save the Kiez-Döner restaurant, where trade has been badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaign raised almost £30,000, far exceeding its original target. In addition, a local Jewish businessman donated cash to fund giveaways of free kebabs to help drum up business.

The restaurant was targeted by neo-Nazi gunman Stephan Balliet after he failed to get through the security doors of the synagogue and after he shot dead a woman passerby close to the synagogue. At the kebab restaurant he murdered a twenty-year-old customer.

Restaurant co-owner, Ismet Tekin, said: “It’s really amazing what they did. They did it out of solidarity, to show that we are together, that we can get through these times if we are united.”

A member of the Halle Jewish community pointed out that both the synagogue and the Muslim-owned restaurant were targeted by Balliet because they “did not reflect his idea of what should be in Germany.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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“Jews to the ovens” and other neo-nazi abuse as Gaia Servadio book presentation is Zoombombed

An online presentation in Italy for the new novel by the Italian journalist-turned-fiction-writer Gaia Servadio, was suspended after being interrupted by antisemitic and neo-nazi abuse.

The presentation for the book, entitled Giudei (“Jews”), was sponsored by the magazine Carta Vetrata. Commenting on the abuse, Ms Servadio said that similar events had occurred during “other online presentations, even in England,” where she lives. Ms Servadio, whose father was Jewish, was born in 1938 and experienced antisemitism in Padua, where she grew up.

Abuse in the Zoombombing included comments such as “Jews to the ovens” and “f***ing Jews” as well as other expletives and belching noises.

She has lived in London for more than 50 years and was the mother-in-law of Boris Johnson when her daughter, Allegra Mostyn-Owen, was the British Prime Minister’s first wife. The novel tells the story of a turbulent century through the lives of two Jewish families.  

Campaign Against Antisemitism has previously reported on the phenomenon of ‘Zoom bombing’ and has urged communal institutions to take precautions to safeguard against antisemitic disruption of online events.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Heroic volunteer security guards prevent knife attack on Jewish school and kosher supermarket in Marseilles before police arrest suspect

A knife attack on a Jewish school in the French city of Marseilles has been averted thanks to the intervention of school parents volunteering as security guards.

École Yavne (Yavne School) was locked down during the attack at 08:15 this morning, and nobody was injured, with police subsequently alerting all Jewish institutions across the southern city to increase security.

With his attack on the school foiled, the suspect reportedly targeted a kosher supermarket in the hope of stabbing Jewish victims, but he was again prevented by security.

Eventually the police arrived and apprehended the suspect.

The Chairman of the Jewish Agency warned that “the attack in Marseille today is a red flag that should alert us to the antisemitism that is happening below the radar, and is simply waiting to break free once the movement restrictions of the pandemic come to an end.”

We pay tribute to the volunteer security personnel who prevented these heinous attacks, and commend those in Britain and around the world who guard Jewish institutions and put themselves in harm’s way to protect others, sometimes making the ultimate sacrifice.

Marseilles has seen numerous violent antisemitic attacks in recent years, with the fatal stabbing of two women at a train station in 2017 and a machete attack on a Jewish man outside a synagogue in 2016.

It is also not the first attack on a Jewish school or kosher supermarket in the country. In 2012, a gunman murdered a teacher and three children at a Jewish school in Toulouse, while a Parisian kosher supermarket was attacked in 2015, leaving four people dead.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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French anti-vaccination protestors described as “brainless” for using yellow star at demonstration

Organisers of an anti-vaccine demonstration in the French city of Avignon have been described as “brainless” for using the Nazi yellow star in their protest.

In the demonstration organised by a radical group of “southern citizens”, some 45 protestors marched through the centre of the historic city carrying banners showing yellow stars and comparing COVID-19 restrictions with Nazi persecution of Jews.

In an interview for a French-language website, one of the organisers conceded that France was “certainly not in a genocide” but that “these laws against liberty recall dark moments in our history.”

The Deputy (parliamentarian) for the region, Eric Ciotti, condemned the protestors as “brainless” and “outrageous”, while Fabienne Haloui, a local councillor, said that while protest was legitimate, the restriction of freedoms caused by the pandemic and lockdown can “in no way be compared to the persecution of Jews which ended in genocide.”

Sometimes it was “good to have a sense of proportion,” she added.

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

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Amsterdam kosher restaurant owner says he has “lost count” of antisemitic attacks on his property

The owner of an Amsterdam kosher restaurant said that he has “lost count” of the number of times his establishment has been vandalised following the latest incident, in which an antisemitic slogan was painted on his windows.

Daniel Bar-On, the owner of the HaCarmel restaurant in the Dutch capital, told local news outlets that he had “lost count” of the number of antisemitic attacks on his property.

“There are many restaurants owned by different nationalities along this street, but we are the only one subjected to these kinds of incidents,” explained Mr Bar-On.

His comments follow the recent desecration of a Jewish cemetery in Rotterdam, prompting the municipal authorities in the port city to provide more surveillance cameras and more police at Jewish institutions.

Rotterdam councillor Tanya Hoogwerf said in a media interview that “continuing hatred” towards the Jewish community in The Netherlands was “shocking”. Referring to a “series of incidents in our country”, Ms Hoogwerf added that, while politicians had been “falling over themselves to speak out” against antisemitism, “no effective measures have been taken.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Altar to Heinrich Himmler found in police raid on far-right centre near Rome

An altar honouring the senior Nazi figure, Heinrich Himmler, was found when premises near Rome used by an Italian far-right movement were cleared by police.

The altar, dedicated to Himmler and Erich Priebke – an SS officer convicted of war crimes in Italy – was found together with other objects relating to Fascist and Nazi ideology during an eviction from a centre in Maccarese, near Rome.

The centre has reportedly been illegally occupied since 2008 by Fons Perennis, a far-right organisation with links to the neo-fascist, pro-Nazi movement CasaPound which was, in its early years, a political party named in honour of the author Ezra Pound.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Nazi concentration camp guard deported from United States but German prosecutors drop case for lack of evidence

A guard at a Nazi concentration camp who has lived in the United States since 1959 has been deported to Germany.

German prosecutors, however, have dropped their case against him for lack of evidence.

Friedrich Karl Berger, 95, has admitted to working as a guard at the Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg, but he denies witnessing any killings or abuse of prisoners. During the deportation hearing, Mr Berger admitted that he had prevented prisoners from fleeing the camp.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Mr Berger claimed that he had been forced to work in the camp, had spent only a short time there and had not carried a weapon. He also said that “after 75 years” it was “ridiculous” to force him out of his home.

German police are to question him further about his wartime activities.

The US judge who last year ordered the deportation said that camp prisoners were held in “atrocious” conditions and often worked “to the point of exhaustion and death.” The Acting Attorney-General, Monty Wilkinson, said that Mr Berger’s deportation showed the administration’s commitment to ensuring that the United States was “not a safe haven for those who have participated in Nazi crimes.”

German prosecutors have continued to pursue former Nazi camp officials. In February, a 95-year-old woman who had worked as a secretary at the Stutthof camp and a 100-year-old man who was a guard at Sachsenhausen were charged with aiding and abetting mass murder.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

Image credit: US Department of Justice

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Bulgarian TV host apologises after allegedly denying Holocaust on air

The host of a popular gameshow on Bulgarian National Television has apologised after allegedly denying the Holocaust and spouting anti-Jewish racism on air.

After asking contestants to name “the chess player with Jewish roots who nonetheless spoke out harshly against Jews,” Orlin Goranov went on to quote from an article on a white supremacist website. The author claimed to have interviewed the late chess master Bobby Fischer, who was also infamous for promoting antisemitism. Mr Goranov quoted the article claiming to quote Mr Fischer saying, “There were no gas chambers; that’s all baloney” and that Jews didn’t like to work, which was “one of the things the Jews didn’t like about Hitler’s concentration camps.”

On the following day, Bulgarian National Television’s director, Emil Koshlukov, apologised, saying that the quotations “contain hate speech and slander” and promised to “punish the employees” responsible for the incident.

A day later, Mr Goranov apologised on air, saying that his comments were not aimed at offending Jews “but at accurately quoting Fischer.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Polish historian resigns from “dream job” over alleged links to far-right organisation

A historian in a Polish institute that researches World War II war crimes has resigned after alleged links to a far-right organisation emerged, along with pictures of him performing a Nazi-style salute.

Tomasz Greniuch, who was appointed in February as the head of the Wroclaw branch of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), resigned less than two weeks later amid outrage over his alleged links to the National Radical Camp, a far-right group, and after pictures appeared of him apparently performing a Nazi-style salute at rallies in the early 2000s.

The director of the Prime Minister’s Office, Michal Dworczyk, urged him to resign “for the sake of the institution and the image of Poland.”

Mr Greniuch’s appointment to such a sensitive role has caused controversy in Poland, where the governing Law and Justice Party has faced accusations of encouraging far-right sentiment, a charge that the Party denies.

Some politicians have called for the resignation of the head of the IPN, Jaroslaw Szarek, who went ahead with Mr Greniuch’s appointment despite concerns voiced by members of the Government and by the Polish President.

Mr Greniuch issued a public apology on Friday declaring: “I have never been a Nazi and I apologise for the irresponsible gesture I made a dozen years ago, which was a mistake.” He added. “The gesture was the result of youthful bravado,” and was not aimed at “glorifying totalitarianism”.

In a 2019 interview, he said that he had not cut himself off from his earlier views but had changed his behaviour and noted that “when you have your dream job, you try to be a professional.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Holocaust-denier David Irving Is reportedly charging £2,000 for private tours of concentration camps

Notorious Holocaust-denier David Irving is reportedly charging £2,000 per person for a tour of concentration camps.

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post earlier this month, Mr Irving claimed that he was giving tours to thirteen people at camps and execution sites in Latvia and Poland. He advertises his tours with a title “The Real History Tour of the Wolf’s Lair”, and states underneath: “Don’t miss this lifetime adventure! Make up your own mind about the truth.” In his tours, Mr Irving’s groups visit Hitler’s headquarters, where Mr Irving apparently claims that the Nazi dictator was not aware of the Holocaust.

When asked if his denial tours might fuel antisemitism, an unapologetic Mr Irving replied to his interviewer: “The Jews should ask, Why us? It is not for me to ask that question. Maybe it’s how they have acted over the thousands of years. Maybe it is all our fault. Our Riga tour includes the NKVD [Soviet Interior Ministry] headquarters, and the Skirotawa train station, where Jews also played a role.”

When asked who his paying clients are, Mr Irving claimed that two were judges and three were lawyers, with the group including Russians, Britons, Americans and one from each of France, Sweden, New Zealand and Canada.

British-born Mr Irving was previously incarcerated for thirteen months in Austria for violating its Holocaust-denial laws. He is banned from Austria, Germany and Italy where Holocaust denial is illegal and he is also banned from Canada.

Mr Irving, who was discredited as a historian at a defamation trial in 2000, said during a far-right forum in 2017 that Auschwitz is “small beer” and now “like Disneyland”.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “David Irving is a disgraced historian whose views on the Holocaust are a deep insult to Jews worldwide and to the truth. That he reportedly seeks to profit from his notoriety and peddling of untruths is disturbing and unacceptable. Mr Irving has earned his reputation as a pariah, and should be treated as such by his would-be patrons and others who have the misfortune of encountering him.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has been monitoring and acting against the threat from the far-right for years and continues to support the authorities following suit.

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Dutch politician calls Nuremberg trials “illegitimate”

The leader of a Dutch Party that has two seats in the country’s Parliament, has provoked outrage by stating that the trials against Nazi leaders in Nuremberg after World War II were “illegitimate”.

Thierry Baudet, who leads the Forum for Democracy Party, was addressing a rally in the town of Gouda, ahead of the 17th March General Election, when he was asked about the notion of prosecuting the Mayor of Amsterdam for alleged police brutality. He said that he was “no supporter of retroactive punitive legal action” adding: “I consider the Nuremberg trials as illegitimate. You shouldn’t retroactively judge people.”

Political rivals and a Dutch antisemitism watchdog said that Mr Baudet’s remark was “shocking”.

The Nuremberg trials led to the conviction of prominent members of the leadership of Nazi Germany, who planned, carried out or participated in the Holocaust and other war crimes.

Mr Baudet recently resigned as Leader after the Party’s youth division became embroiled in a scandal over antisemitism, but he has since returned as Leader after an apparent split in the Party.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Police open investigation after 93-year-old Italian Holocaust survivor subject to antisemitic abuse online

Italian police have opened an investigation into racially-aggravated threatening behaviour after 93-year-old Holocaust survivor Liliana Segre was the target of antisemitic abuse on social media.

Ms Segre, who in 2018 was named Senator for Life by Italian President, Sergio Mattarella, was subjected to antisemitic hate after she was pictured receiving her COVID-19 vaccination on 18th February.

Abusive comments included: “…the a**hole … not even the Germans managed to kill her…and now she’s afraid of dying.” Another was: “And now let’s hope that the vaccine does its job…and she gets the f*** out of the way.”

In her first act after becoming a Senator for Life, she proposed the establishment of a parliamentary commission on racism, antisemitism and incitement to hatred and violence.

Italian police say that a formal investigation has been opened into racially-aggravated threatening behaviour following the online abuse.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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French Jewish politician told Muslims will “deal with” her and to prepare for death camps

An antisemitic e-mail was sent to a French Jewish politician telling her that Muslims will “deal with” her and to “prepare for” the death camps.

Yaël Braun-Pivet, a member of the French National Assembly representing the ruling LREM party, revealed on Twitter the contents of an antisemitic e-mail sent to her private online account.

After telling her to prepare for the death camps, the e-mail stated: “This time, it’s the Muslims who will deal with you.”

It also said: “Jews can no longer come into some neighbourhoods. Within two generations it will be whole cities. Demography determines laws.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Swastikas and Nazi slogans carved into door of Swiss synagogue

Swastikas and antisemitic Nazi slogans, including Sieg Heil, were carved into the door of a synagogue in the Swiss town of Biel.

The desecration, which is being investigated by police, was described as “a serious antisemitic incident” by the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG/FCSI).  

Biel, also known as Bienne, is near the Swiss capital, Bern, and lies on the border between the French-speaking and German-speaking regions of the country.

In a statement, the SIG/FCSI said that it was “shocked,” and condemned “this act of violence in the strongest possible terms.” 

The SIG/FCSI and the local Jewish community are jointly filing a criminal complaint and expressed the hope that the perpetrator would be found quickly.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

Image credit: SIG/FCSI

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Dieudonné must pay fine or face prison for mocking Holocaust in a video

The controversial French comedian Dieudonné was instructed by the Paris Court of Appeals to pay a fine of €9,000 (over £7,700) for mocking the Holocaust in a video.

Dieudonné, whose real name is M’Bala M’Bala, is a French comedian and political activist who has been convicted for hate speech and advocating terrorism, among other offences, in France and Belgium.

Mr M’Bala M’Bala faces the fine or a ten-month prison sentence following the rejection of his appeal for a conviction for publishing a video and a song entitled “C’est Mon choaaa” (“That’s my Shoah”). The fine was originally imposed in November 2019, but he appealed against the sentence. He also denied singing it or writing it, claiming that it was written by a prison inmate during a song-writing workshop.

The court ruled that the lyrics referred “unquestionably, by innuendo,” to the Holocaust (Shoah) which was being “mocked.” The court said that the right to humour invoked by Dieudonné conflicted with “another right – that of human dignity.”

Mr M’Bala M’Bala, 54, has attacked the “Zionist lobby”, claiming it controls the world, and he has been convicted more than twenty times on charges that include defamation, hate speech and endorsing terrorism in Belgium and France. Last year, he was given a two-year jail sentence and fined for tax fraud and money-laundering.

In 2013, Mr M’Bala M’Bala was recorded during a performance suggesting that it was a pity that a Jewish journalist was not sent to the gas chambers. The then-French interior minister, Manuel Valls, declared that Mr M’Bala M’Bala was an “antisemite and a racist” and he would seek to ban all his events as public safety risks.

Last summer, as social media platforms claimed to be stepping up their fight against hate content, Mr M’Bala M’Bala was permanently banned from several major online platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram, for his use of “dehumanising” terms in relation to Jews.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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“Forza Hitler!” scrawled on Jewish teacher’s car near Milan

A Jewish schoolteacher from a town just outside Milan found antisemitic abuse scrawled over her car.

The teacher – who has lived in the municipality of Rosate for more than twenty years – found “Forza Hitler!” scrawled in permanent marker on the family car.

In a Facebook post, the Mayor of Rosate, Daniele del Ben, apologised to the teacher and her family on behalf of the whole city.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Jewish police officer finds “dirty Jew” and swastikas on his precinct locker

A French Jewish police officer found swastikas and “dirty Jew” scrawled on his locker at his police precinct.

The officer, who is part of an elite unit based south-west of Paris, discovered the antisemitic vandalism earlier this month.

The Jewish officer filed a police complaint and the incident is the subject of an internal probe. A French antisemitism watchdog (BNVCA) that was contacted by the officer said that the perpetrator was likely to be a fellow police officer.

The founder of BNVCA, Sammy Ghozlan, a former police commissioner, described the incident as “extremely serious” , as it undermined the Jewish community’s trust in the police who are entrusted, he said, with protecting citizens against antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Spain’s Justice Minister orders investigation over far-right rally in Madrid

Spain’s Justice Minister, Enrique Lopez, has ordered prosecutors to open an investigation into possible antisemitic hate crimes following a rally in central Madrid on 13th February.

Several hundred supporters of the far-right, wearing fascist insignia and displaying flags from the Franco era, took part in the rally to honour Spanish soldiers who fought alongside the Nazis in World War II.

Video footage seen on Twitter showed speeches that contained antisemitic slurs and expressed support for Nazi ideology. It also showed supporters singing a fascist anthem and raising their hands in a Nazi salute.

The investigation follows complaints from human-rights groups.

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Pork and pig images used in assaults on Swiss synagogues

Pork products and a pig effigy were used in antisemitic assaults against synagogues in two Swiss cities within a few days of one another, sparking concern among Jewish groups.

After a pack of bacon and a stuffed toy pig were left outside a synagogue in Lausanne, the CICAD, a leading Swiss Jewish communal organisation, posted on Twitter, saying: “Acts of this nature are an insult to any Jew and take on a highly symbolic dimension when they are committed in a synagogue. These are serious facts which must challenge our authorities and our fellow citizens.”

Four days later, a woman threw slices of pork at a Liberal synagogue in Geneva. CICAD said that criminal complaints would be filed.

The group also issued a statement explaining why the incident was “far from trivial”. It was reminiscent, the group said, of the ancient antisemitic Judensau (a folk art image of a Jews engaged in obscene contact with a female pig) used in anti-Jewish texts and art and in Nazi imagery and cartoons. Its use has been especially prevalent in German-speaking countries, the statement noted.

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Portuguese hero facing backlash over antisemitic tweet

Rodrigo Sousa Castro, a leader of the 1974 Portuguese Revolution, has sparked public outrage after he shared an antisemitic social media post.

Mr Sousa Castro was a military general who helped lead the Carnation Revolution of 1974 in Lisbon, which ended the authoritarian Estate Novo regime. Mr Sousa Castro has since been hailed as a national hero and his contribution is celebrated annually on 25th April, known nationally as “Freedom Day”.

On 5th February, however, he posted a tweet that read: “The Jews dominate global finance so they have the vaccines they wanted. It’s a kind of historical revenge. And I won’t say more until the Zionist bulldogs jump.” The tweet employed a classic antisemitic trope.

Leaders of the Portuguese Jewish community issued a statement condemning the general’s remark as deeply antisemitic and prejudiced. The statement added that such overt hate speech must not be ignored because of Mr Sousa Castro’s high profile.

After removing his initial tweet, Mr Sousa Castro stated: “A post in which I speak of Zionism and its crimes in Palestine was deleted because of the support of the Nazi-Zionism legion. Our page is now sanitised”. Under the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Norway state-owned radio morning-show host pejoratively refers to “God’s chosen people” in on-air rant

A host on Norway’s state-owned broadcaster went on an antisemitic rant on live radio referring pejoratively to Israel as “God’s chosen people”.

In a segment on 3rd February in which morning-show host Shaun Henrik Matheson said that “We must never forget what a s***ty country Israel is”, he also said: “If some homemade rocket should land somewhere over the God’s chosen people, then terrible actions of revenge are committed where thousands of people are killed, often children.”

Mr Matheson’s hostility toward the Jewish state was such that he admitted that he “almost wished” the COVID-19 vaccine, which Israel is distributing more rapidly than any other country, had not worked.

As NRK’s Broadcasting Council prepared to meet, its Secretary, Erik Skarrud, revealed that 527 communications had been received regarding the programme, an overwhelming majority of which were critical and complaints. Very few were supportive, he said: “you can probably count those on one hand.”

Complaints against Mr Matheson have also been filed with the Norwegian police. “It is time to close down NRK,” said Norwegian parliamentarian, Per-Willy Amundsen of the Progress Party. Asserting that the broadcaster was a “front for the hatred of Jews,” Mr Amundsen urged that NRK be downsized and sold. Privatisation was “the best solution,” he said.

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French bishops issue declaration against antisemitism

Leading Catholic bishops in France have issued a declaration to combat what they call the “worrying resurgence of antisemitism in France.”

The declaration,  signed by the President of the Conference of Bishops of France, Monseigneur Éric de Moulins-Beaufort, and four senior bishops, was unveiled at a short ceremony on 8th February at which French Jewish leaders were present.

The text said that the brutal murders of four people last year at the hands of Islamist assailants had confronted the French people with basic questions of mutual respect and called for “special attention to be paid to the worrying resurgence of antisemitism in France.” 

The Bishops said that they “strongly reiterate how much the fight against antisemitism must be everybody’s business” and affirm their “willingness to work with all those engaged in this struggle.”

Calling for “spiritual resistance against antisemitism,” the declaration said that, while “faith in Jesus distinguishes and separates us,” it obliges us to recognise that “ healing from antisemitism and anti-Judaism” was essential “for a genuine fraternity.”

The Chief Rabbi of France, Haim Korsia, praised what he called a “prophetic initiative,” while Francis Kalifat, President of Jewish communal body CRIF, compared its significance to the 1997 apology made to the Jewish community by the Catholic Church in France for its failings during the Nazi occupation of France.

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Swiss Jews act as far-right party publishes new edition of Protocols

Switzerland’s Jewish community is taking legal action over a new edition of  “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,” published by the far-right Swiss Nationalist Party (PNOS).

“The Protocols” were an antisemitic hoax fabricated more than a century ago in Czarist Russia and are a source of many of the most virulent antisemitic tropes. PNOS has provided a new foreword which states: “Whether real or fake, we don’t need to worry, because we are mainly concerned with the content.”  

The Swiss Federation of Jewish communities (SIG-FCSI) filed a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office in Bern after the publication was flagged in the PNOS magazine Harus.

In a statement, SIG-FCSI noted that “especially” during the COVID-19 pandemic “conspiracy myths” had gained popularity, including those that were antisemitic. “The publication of ‘The Protocols’ encourages such conspiracy myths and promotes Jew-hatred,.” the statement declared, adding that the new foreword clearly showed that these were the goals of the PNOS.

The PNOS is active mainly in the German-speaking cantons but is not represented in any of Switzerland’s parliaments. It was classified as an “extremist” group in 2001. Its leader, Thomas Steiger, has reportedly used his Facebook page to spread antisemitic propaganda, on one occasion telling a journalist that “Jews should be sterilised.”

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Leiden University professor cleared of antisemitism charges

An independent committee inquiry has cleared Prof. Paul Cliteur, from the Law Faculty of the University of Leiden, and his associates of accusations of antisemitism.

The recent investigation was initiated after a Dutch right-wing political party, Forum for Democracy, in which Mr Cliteur held a prominent position, disbanded. Last November, the Party’s leader, Thierry Baudet, faced significant backlash following the exposure of extremist and hateful statements in the youth section of the organisation.

Mr Cliteur maintained his membership and stated that he was “in solidarity with Baudet and his ideological line”.

A publication followed in which twenty-seven former doctoral students of Mr Cliteur claimed that the professor had failed to take action against antisemitic statements made directly by Mr Baudet. Mr Baudet has received criticism for several inflammatory and offensive remarks, including the comment, “You are everywhere”, directed towards a Jewish individual.

A group of professors from Mr Cliteur’s faculty subsequently shared an open letter that claimed that antisemitism, xenophobia and anti-democratic attitudes are normalised and common in the Forum of Democracy, and shared by its members.

Following a two-month investigation, the Committee of Inquiry concluded that “the position of the [van Cliteur] Department”, and that of the Faculty of Law and the University of Leiden, had been “wrongly affected” by the allegations.

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Belgian Prime Minister’s home vandalised with swastikas

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo’s private residence was defaced with several swastikas in the early hours of 31st January.

According to local press, seven large swastikas were found sprayed across a mailbox and the front of the house. The vandalism was discovered the following morning and reported to local law enforcement, who have thus far been unable to identify those responsible.

A demonstration of the far-right political action group Vlaanderen Ons Land, Flanders Our Country, was held the same weekend in Brakel. Police are trying to establish if there is a connection between the demonstration and the vandalism. The protest comprised fifteen participants, however there was reportedly a large federal police presence.

Through his spokesperson, Prime Minister De Croo condemned the damage to his private property and the failed attempt to intimidate his family through fascist and antisemitic symbolism.

According to the Prosecutor’s Office East Flanders, an investigation into the incident is ongoing.

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Lecturer at top Moscow university says gas chambers not for killing and six million dead Jews is “a fiction”

A lecturer on international relations at a prestigious Moscow university denied that Nazi gas chambers were used to kill people and said that six million dead Jews was “a fiction”.

Prof. Vladimir Matveyev is expected to face a charge of Holocaust denial, which is illegal in Russia.

Speaking online to teachers from the St. Petersburg region on Holocaust Remembrance Day, Prof. Matveyev, a lecturer at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), said: “No gas chambers were found to kill people in concentration camps,” and claimed that the “gas was used by the Germans for disinfection.” He also stated: “Six million dead Jews are a fiction.”

In a statement issued on the same day, the state-owned RANEPA said that it “cannot accept” the lies told by Prof. Matveyev and said that he was not representing the University when he made the remarks but was participating “outside his professional duties.”

St. Petersburg Rabbi Menachem Mendel Pevzner, of the Federation of Jewish Communities, said that his office was pressing charges against Prof. Matveyev for hate speech and Holocaust denial, which are illegal in Russia.

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Rome students marking Holocaust Remembrance Day Zoombombed by Neo-Nazis

A Rome High School was Zoombombed with antisemitic slurs during the screening of a film to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Students and teachers of the Istituto Tecnico Federico Caffé were on Zoom during the screening of the film made at the technical high school, entitled “The Wandering Jew in 20th-century Art.”

The Zoom meeting was interrupted by comments on the “chat” function, including, “Viva Hitler,” “I will kill all you bastards” and “Open the ovens”.

Staff believe that the meeting may have been “bombed” because a link was sent to neo-fascist groups.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has warned about the phenomenon of Zoombombing over the past year, as video gatherings have become more common during the period of pandemic lockdowns.

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Antwerp attack on Orthodox boy after Mayor criticises Jewish community over alleged non-compliance with coronavirus precautions

An Orthodox Jewish boy and his father were violently attacked in Antwerp on Wednesday night.

The incident, in which the alleged assailant grabbed the 13-year-old Orthodox boy by the throat and then attacked the boy’s father, was blamed on antisemitism that has resurfaced in the Belgian city and was possibly fuelled by comments from Antwerp Mayor Bart De Wever in relation to COVID19 compliance and the Orthodox community.

Two days earlier, Mayor De Wever had commented on the poor response to a mail-shot inviting 6,500 residents of Antwerp’s Jewish quarter to test for the virus. In criticising the low response he asserted that the community risked a “wave of antisemitism” as a result.

His critics claim that the comments, in which he referenced “Jewish schools” and the “Jewish quarter”, singled out Jews for criticism and helped to fuel antisemitism in Belgium.

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Five German companies unite against antisemitism and racism in a strong signal ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day

During an online commemoration event for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, five German companies issued a joint declaration against antisemitism and racism in the country.

Borussia Dortmund, Daimler, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Bank and Volkswagon, together with Freundeskreis Yad Vashem, shared their decision to take ownership of their historical responsibility for such hatred in the hopes of advocating for freedom, democracy, diversity and peaceful coexistence. According to the collective, the declaration reflects a commitment to the culture of remembrance and the limitation of far-right and other extremist ideologies.

The five companies expressed great concern at the increasing rates of hatred, and condemned the “fatal development” of rising antisemitic violence.

The declaration has emerged following a decision by all five companies to adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism. The participating companies expressed a united front in combating antisemitism, in the hope that other organisations and corporations will follow suit.

The commemoration took place as a digital event, with speakers including the current Chair of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance and the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. Nearly two hundred guests from across civil society, the Government and employees of all the participating companies were invited to attend.

A representative for Freundeskreis Yad Vashem e.V. praised the companies for their joint stance against antisemitism and discrimination, and stated that it is an “important and clear sign both for Germany and the whole world”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

Image credit: Deutsche Bahn

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Romanian Foreign Minister says online antisemitism has risen significantly during the pandemic

According to the Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, antisemitism and incidences of discrimination have intensified online throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

The head of Romanian diplomacy spoke at an event organised on the 80th anniversary of the Bucharest pogrom against Jews in 1941.

Mr Aurescu stated that the Romanian Government will soon complete and finalise the development of a national strategy against rising antisemitism, radicalisation, xenophobia and hate speech, with a plan that can be implemented to halt the growing phenomenon in the country. He assured that increasingly accurate data will help prepare law enforcement forces to tackle hatred, and school curricula and university courses will be harnessed to enable young people to recognise manifestations of such.

Mr Aurescu maintained that Romania is also actively involved in the development of the European Union’s first antisemitism strategy, which it hopes will be launched for public debate in the near future.

According to the head of the ministry, these strategies are intended to prevent the recurrence of tragedies such as the Bucharest pogrom during WWII, which saw at least 120 Jews murdered, hundreds injured and 1,100 homes, shops and synagogues looted and damaged. He stated that this was not an isolated incident, with the ensuing Pogrom of Iasi and the deportation of Jews to the Transnistria region.

The Government hopes that it can close “one of the darkest and most painful chapters in the history of Romania”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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“Ireland is committed to fighting antisemitism and racism”: says Irish Taoiseach at Holocaust Memorial

Taoiseach Michéal Martin addressed a virtual commemoration in the Mansion House, Dublin on 24th January to mark National Holocaust Memorial Day.

Mr Martin said that education is an “important tool” in strengthening and deepening the collective understanding of the events of the Holocaust, and maintained that the country is continually committed to combating antisemitism.

The two remaining Holocaust survivors in Ireland, Tomi Reichental and Suzi Diamond, also addressed the event, which was organised by the Holocaust Education Trust Ireland. Mr Martin stated that the value of sharing their personal experiences and their continual efforts to raise awareness is “incalculable”.

The Irish Prime Minister also noted that last June the Government appointed a specific anti-racism committee with a mandate to construct and develop a new national action plan, and he maintained that the fight against rising rates of antisemitism in Europe must be “sustained” to account for growing technologies and platforms that provide new opportunities for “old hate and prejudice”.

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The Netherlands names author who allegedly made negative comments about Dutch Jews as lead speaker at WWII commemoration

A Muslim author who has allegedly expressed negative sentiments about Dutch Jews and Israel has been named as the keynote speaker at The Netherland’s Remembrance of the Dead event.

The National Committee which organises the annual commemoration announced last week that Moroccan-born Abdelkader Benali will deliver the address at this year’s main memorial ceremony in Amsterdam. Held on 4th May and attended by King Willem-Alexander and other dignitaries, it is the day when the nation remembers its fallen soldiers and the victims of Nazism, who include 102,000 Dutch Jews.

According to a 2010 article published in the HP de Tijd weekly by Harald Doornbos, a respected Dutch journalist, Mr Benali expressed antisemitic views in July 2006 in Beirut, Lebanon, during a conversation between the two. Mr Doornbos, a specialist on the Muslim world, wrote “Benali let loose”, and quoted Mr Benali as allegedly saying that southern Amsterdam “is full of Jews. And that’s annoying that there are so many of them. Amsterdam Jews. Makes you feel uneasy as a Moroccan. It looks like Israel. So many Jews, it just feels crazy.”

In a 2009 opinion piece published in the Volkskrant newspaper, Mr Benali called Gaza a “ghetto.” According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, comparing Israel’s actions to those of the Nazis is an example of antisemitism.

This is not the first controversy for the organisers: in 2017, after naming rapper Emerson Akachar as “ambassador for peace,” it emerged that a year before he had been filmed shouting “Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas” during a soccer match. The committee revoked the honour. In 2012, meanwhile, a poem describing an SS soldier as “a victim of World War II” was pulled after sparking protests.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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One of world’s largest Holocaust centres to be built at site of historic massacre at Babyn Yar

One of the largest Holocaust memorial centres in the world is set to be built in Ukraine at Babyn Yar (also known as Babi Yar), near the capital, Kyiv.

Plans for the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Centre (BYHMC) were unveiled on 20th January. The site will have a dozen buildings including, a Holocaust exhibition space and a memorial to those slaughtered at Babyn Yar. The BYHMC will also include an educational centre, a multi-media centre and a spiritual centre containing a synagogue, church and mosque.

Babyn Yar was chosen because it was the site of the the first major massacre of European Jews in World War II. In September 1941, over 33,000 Jews were taken from Kyiv to the Babyn Yar Ravine and shot. Afterwards, the site became a Nazi killing ground for Jews and non-Jews with an estimated death toll of 100,000.

The synagogue and exhibition space are scheduled to be completed this year in time for the 80th anniversary of the massacre.

Natan Sharansky, the Ukrainian-born former head of the Jewish Agency and one-time Soviet refusenik, is the chair of the BYHMC’s Supervisory Board. Describing the concept as “amazing”, he said that the museum and educational centre would be “different from many other Holocaust centres”, so helping to “fill a vacuum in the field of Holocaust studies.”

Poland’s former President, Aleksander Kwasniewski, who is also a member of the Supervisory Board, said that the new centre “will allow us to find a common language with the younger generation.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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French Jewish victim of brutal antisemitic gang remembered on 15th anniversary of kidnap

Today marks the 15th anniversary of the kidnapping, torture and murder of Ilan Halimi, a 23-year-old French Jew.

Social media posts remembered Mr Halimi who, on 20th January 2006, was kidnapped by an antisemitic gang and then tortured in what Washington Post columnist James McAuley described as “one of the most brutal antisemitic attacks in France in recent memory (and there have been quite a few).”

Mr Halimi, who lived in the Paris suburb of Bagneux with his mother and sister, spent three weeks in captivity as gang members tortured him and tried to extort ransom money from his relatives. He died on the way to the hospital after being dumped near a railway track on the outskirts of the French capital.

Part of the eulogy written for Mr Halimi by Judea Pearl, father of murdered American journalist Daniel Pearl, was also shared on Twitter: “Let there be no silence on your grave, Ilan; no rest, nor learned discussion… until another Zola rises with a louder ‘J’accuse’.”

Francis Kalifat, president of CRIF, the organisation representing French Jews, wrote on Twitter, “I think of his family and all the victims of antisemitism. Neither forgiveness nor forgetting.”

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Swastika-wearing goats and Nazi monkey at Russian circus spark public backlash

Prosecutors in Russia have launched an investigation into a circus performance that featured a monkey clothed in a Nazi uniform and two goats dressed in blankets embellished with swastikas. It is alleged that the incident may have broken laws surrounding the promotion of fascism.

The performance, watched by young children and their families, was commissioned by the Russian Orthodox Church in Udmurtia, a region in western Russia. Social media footage showed the animals being controlled by circus performers and trainers around the ring dressed in Soviet uniforms. The audience can be heard applauding and cheering throughout the show, which occurred on the day after Orthodox Christmas.

Following public outcry, the church released a statement in which it assured that the performance was used to celebrate the “victory over fascism” in Moscow in 1942, and to reflect a “worldwide condemnation” of the ideals of Nazi Germany.

In 2014, the country introduced a ban on Nazi symbols, however the law was later amended after politicians highlighted that it applied to documentaries and films about the Nazi regime and the Second World War. The Chairman of the public chamber of Udmurtia stated that the use of Nazi symbols, akin to those incorporated in the circus, are permitted for educational purposes.

Prosectors have not issued a comment on their current investigation.

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Greek Jewish Community denounces cartoon that trivialises the Holocaust

The Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece (KIS) has denounced what it calls “another attempt to diminish and exploit the Holocaust” following the publication of a cartoon in a Greek newspaper.

The KIS said that a cartoon published in the Greek daily Efimerida ton Syntakton on 16th January depicting the iconic image of Auschwitz with a play on its slogan to make a point about universities (“Studies Make You Free”) was “a hideous and vulgar” use of the Holocaust for political purposes.

The KIS said that Kostas Grigoriadis, the cartoonist responsible for the cartoon, had drawn another in the same newspaper in 2018 in which he also depicted the entrance to the Auschwitz death camp to protest plans for a twelve-hour work day.

In a statement, KIS said that neither the expressions of respect towards the victims of the Holocaust nor the newspaper’s “firm position against antisemitism” excused it for publishing cartoons that insulted “the memory of the victims” by “trivialising the place of their martyrdom.”

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Portugal’s first Holocaust Museum to open this week in Oporto

A Holocaust museum is due to open this week in Oporto, Portugal’s second-largest city after the capital, Lisbon. It will be the first museum of its kind in the country.

The idea for a Holocaust museum in the city was conceived by the local Jewish community. During World War II, the the local Jewish community played an important role in giving refuge to Jews fleeing other European countries.

The Mayor of Oporto and the President of Oporto’s Jewish community will preside over the inauguration, which will be attended by dignitaries, including the Secretary of State for Culture Jorge Barreto Xavier, UNESCO official Karel Fracapane and the head of the Portuguese delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

Leaders of other faiths are also due to attend, including the Bishop of Oporto and the President of Muslim community.

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Image credit: The Holocaust Museum in Oporto, Portugal

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Passenger with “entrenched racist views” walks free from court after shouting antisemitic abuse and giving Nazi salutes on flight from Warsaw to Liverpool

A man with “entrenched racist views” has walked free from court after shouting antisemitic abuse and giving Nazi salutes on a flight from Warsaw to Liverpool.

Louis Mann’s rant was reportedly filmed by a fellow passenger, a family member of Holocaust victims, who said that he was “shaken”, “shocked” and “disgusted” by the abusive language. Mr Mann is a 28-year-old medical student studying in Poland and was allegedly under the influence of alcohol during the incident.

The prosecution advised that “The defendant was a passenger on a Wizz Air flight from Poland, Warsaw, to Liverpool on 19th October 2019 The flight arrived at Liverpool John Lennon Airport at 17:37,” adding: “The flight was full and passengers reported during the flight Mr Mann had had to be repeatedly asked to sit down, to fasten his seatbelt and to refrain from making rude and offensive gestures.”

The offence for which Mr Mann was charged apparently took place once the flight had landed in the UK. He allegedly “got out of his seat before permitted to do so” and responded to requests from the flight crew to sit down with a “tirade of racial and religious abuse by words and gestures”. According to the prosecution, “He was standing in the aisle of the flight making a Nazi salute and was shouting ‘Anglo-Saxon race, we are superior’.” He also apparently said, “‘Know your place, don’t answer back, you’re a Slavic race traitor n***** lover’,” spoke of “inferior people”, and shouted abuse to “Jewish n***** lovers”.

Mr Mann’s racist rantings apparently continued as he was being arrested and even once he reached the custody suite, where he told one policeman: “You’re alright, you’re Aryan.”

According to the defence, Mr Mann was impacted by recent mental health problems and that he had been “groomed” by far-right groups in Poland.

Wlodzimier Tych wrote in a victim impact statement: “Prior to this I have always felt very welcome in this country. I have lived in this country for 31 years; I have never experienced this sort of behaviour. I am of Jewish origin, this made me feel very shaken and upset, I also felt angry, disgusted and upset as he continued his behaviour regardless of other people’s feelings.”

Mr Mann, of Morecambe, admitted being drunk on the plane but denied a charge of racially aggravated harassment. The court described Mr Mann as having “entrenched racist views” and upheld the drunkenness charge, increasing the sentence to reflect the racial element.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.

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Online event with prominent Italian Jewish journalist is ‘Zoombombed’ by antisemitic thugs

Italian police are investigating an online antisemitic attack that occurred during a Zoom presentation of a book written by leading Italian Jewish journalist Lia Tagliacozzo on 10th January.

The incident, carried out by ten people, aimed antisemitic slurs and slogans at the journalist and organisers of the virtual event, Turin’s Jewish Studies Centre. The threatening and discriminatory phrases included “Jews we’re going to burn you all in the ovens”,“the Nazis are back” and “You must die”. Laughter and fascist chants could also be heard. Several images of Hitler, swastikas and the Third Reich eagle emblem were displayed across viewers’ screens.

The attackers reportedly registered themselves onto the event using fabricated e-mail addresses and the names of individuals known in the wider Jewish community.

The perpetrators were removed swiftly from the Zoom meeting and the event was able to continue with more than one hundred participants present.

Ms Tagliacozzo, who is the daughter of two Holocaust survivors, praised the organisers for their prompt response and ensuring that the cyber-attackers were unsuccessful in preventing the continuation of the presentation.

Following a post on her social media page, Turin prosecutors stated that the case would be taken seriously to ensure the group is identified and held responsible.

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Germany bids to erase last traces of Nazi era as it deletes remnants of anti-Jewish legislation

Anti-Jewish laws introduced during the Third Reich are among pieces of legislation that the German government is being asked to remove from its statute books.

One such law required German Jews who did not have a “typically” Jewish name (according to a list compiled by the Reich Interior Ministry) to add a forename, “Israel” for men and “Sara” for women, in all official documents. The law, passed in 1938, came into effect in January 1939 and gave Jews one month to register their “new” name or face a prison sentence.

The Federal Antisemitism Commissioner Felix Klein found 29 statutes that had still to be deleted entirely, including many introduced under the notorious Nuremberg Laws. Although the post-War occupying powers purged the Israel/Sara law, it was never completely deleted. Describing it as “the most blatant of all”, Mr Klein said that anyone who wished to change their name in Germany, even today, was still “confronted with this antisemitic-motivated law.”

Mr Klein said that he had sent the German Bundestag a complete list of antisemitic laws still on the statute books, calling for their reformulation or deletion.

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Antisemitic letter delivered to the National Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah in Ferrara

A letter containing antisemitic insults and slurs was discovered by employees of the National Museum of Judaism and the Shoah in Italy on the morning of the 8th January.

The contents of the letter have not been published, however reports suggest that the letter included a threatening message and several expletives directed toward the Jewish community.

The director of the Museum, situated in the northern city of Ferrara, said that the cultural and educational mission of the institution remains unwavering and the organisation will not be intimidated by such acts of antisemitism.

Local law enforcement were alerted to the recent incident, and the General Investigations and Special Operations Division has launched an investigation to identify the perpetrator. The envelope was addressed to the popular museum, however the location of its sender is currently unknown.

The Mayor of Ferrara stated that the city, with a historic Jewish heritage, maintains a zero tolerance for racial hatred and discrimination, and those responsible for antisemitic attacks will be held to account.

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Two Deliveroo drivers in France reportedly to face antisemitism investigation

The food-delivery service Deliveroo and two delivery men are facing legal action after two kosher restaurant owners in Strasbourg claimed that delivery men had refused to deliver their food because for reasons of antisemitism.

Raphaël Nisand, Mr Nisand claimed that the restaurateurs had prepared the orders, when “the delivery man asked, ‘What’s your speciality?’” Allegedly, when the restaurateurs said, “these are Israeli specialities, the delivery man answered, ‘oh no, I don’t deliver to Jews’, and cancelled the orders.”

On Sunday, Mr Nisand lodged a complaint with the local police against the delivery men and Deliveroo, the company which assigned the orders.

The Consistoire Israelite for the local Bas-Rhin region, and BNVCA, a French organisation that monitors antisemitism, both added their names to the complaint.

Maurice Dahan, president of the local Consistoire, said in a statement that they consider it “intolerable that delivery men working for the company Deliveroo dare to openly practice antisemitic discrimination.”

On Monday, Deliveroo reportedly said in a statement that it took the incident “very seriously and immediately decided to conduct our own internal investigation to clarify the circumstances. If the facts as reported are proven, we will act and definitively terminate the contract of the responsible delivery man.”

The statement went on: “We have no tolerance for antisemitic words or actions, which constitute a criminal offence,” adding that it condemned “any such act in the strongest possible terms.”

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Turkish media airs antisemitic and anti-Jewish conspiracies

A right-wing, Islamist newspaper known for its support of Turkey’s controversial President Recep Erdoğan and the ruling AK Party, has aired anti-Jewish conspiracy theories including that US President-elect Joe Biden was brought to office by “Jewish controlled media organisations and powerful Jewish lobbies.”

The article, which appeared in Yeni Safak, the Turkish daily newspaper known for its hardline support of Turkey’s long-serving President, also made a series of antisemitic allegations, claiming that “Jewish capital” controlled the “deep state” in the United States. This antisemitic conspiracy has been pushed by other Islamists.

The article claimed that President Trump, the “great president” of the United States, had been removed by “Jewish lords”, adding that “the global Jewish power in America” had dealt “another blow” to President Trump. Allegedly, this was effected “first by allowing Trump supporters to raid Congress” and then by “gathering masses in front of Congress holding ‘Trump is guilty’ banners.”

The article goes on to claim that “Trump fought to free America from the occupation and yoke of Jewish power”, adding that his “great concessions” to the Jews were “to placate them”, but after taking these “concessions” the Jews did not hesitate “to have a gun on Trump’s head!”

The article, written with the byline ‘Yusuf Kaplan’, allegedly goes on to claim that “America is a guinea pig for Jewish power, from which the Jews produced and legitimized their hegemony around the world.”

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Far-right activists in Ukraine blame Jews for Soviet oppression

A few dozen far-right protestors gathered outside the Israeli Embassy in Kyiv calling on Israel and Jews to “repent for genocide” on Ukrainians, apologise for Soviet oppression and take responsibility for a 1930s famine.

The demonstration in the capital of the former Soviet republic was a protest against a tweet by Israel’s ambassador, Joel Lion, which criticised a torchlit march held in memory of a Ukrainian World War II leader and alleged Nazi collaborator.

The far-right activists called on Israel and the Jews to assume responsibility for the famine known as Holodomor. The famine, which killed millions of Ukrainians in the 1930s, was a result of the policies of the then-Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.

Noted activist Vladislav Goranin claimed that Israel “deliberately spreads antisemitism in Ukraine” and that Jews and Israel must “repent for genocide” on Ukrainians. Ultra-nationalists in Ukraine and elsewhere in the former Soviet Union blame Jews for Communist oppression as well as the famine, citing the “support” of some Jews for Communism.

Jews have historically been accused of promoting Communism by its opponents, just as the Communists accused the Jews of propagating Capitalism. According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, examples of antisemitism include “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective”; “Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews”; and “Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism to characterise Israel or Israelis.”

Moreover, Jews in the Soviet Union were subjected to horrendous persecution, as were other minorities, just as they were subjected to pogroms by the Czarist regime that preceded the Soviet Union.

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French Government spokesperson receives letter filled with antisemitic threats

Gabriel Attal, a French politician of the La Républice En Marche! (LREM) Party, received a letter on 8th January that contained antisemitic and homophobic threats against him.

On the envelope, the individual responsible had drawn a yellow and a pink Star of David in a direct reference to the identification system used by the Nazi regime. The letter read: “We’ll kill you…We’ll burn the trash…Bravo Attal = 2 Stars = Yellow and Pink!”

Mr Attal, who currently serves as Government spokesperson under President Emmanuel Macron, shared the hateful content on his social media page and stated that the letter acts as further evidence for what seems to be a significant problem within the country. He argued that the “fight must be permanent” to overcome and prevent racism, antisemitism and homophobia.

Mr Attal announced further that he has filed a complaint into the incident.

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Berlin man subjected to antisemitic insults by knife-wielding attacker who is arrested by police

A man was attacked by a knife-wielding assailant and subjected to antisemitic abuse in Berlin on Monday night earlier this week.

According to a report, the 33-year-old man was subjected to “antisemitic insults” by a drunken 28-year-old who then attacked him with a knife. The victim defended himself with pepper spray.

The attacker was arrested and will face a number of charges including “dangerous bodily harm” and assaulting police officers.

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Rabbi and his children subjected to antisemitic abuse in German city of Offenbach on New Year’s Day leading to “explosion of love and support” as witnesses rush to his aid

A man screamed antisemitic abuse at a rabbi and his children as they walked home from synagogue in the German city of Offenbach on New Year’s Day.

Witnesses to the “traumatic” verbal assault on Rabbi Mendel Gurewitz called police and kept track of the assailant. Police officers later arrested a 46-year-old man for offences including hate speech and displaying symbols of far-right organisations that are banned under the German Constitution.

German-born Rabbi Gurewitz, who has faced antisemitic abuse on previous occasions, described the experience as “traumatic” but praised his fellow citizens for coming immediately to his aid. In a post on Facebook he wrote that people “intervened from every window” to “shout at the aggressor” while “some left their homes” to follow him. Rabbi Gurewitz described it as “a sudden explosion of love and support”.

Uwe Becker, the Antisemitism Commissioner for the Hesse region, condemned the attack as a worrying indication “that Jews cannot openly display their faith in public.” Mr Becker added that those who came to the rabbi’s aid gave “an important sign that everyone can do something against antisemitism.”

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Toulouse imam to face trial for incitement against Jews

An imam in Toulouse is to be prosecuted for incitement to racial hatred over a sermon he delivered in 2017.

Algerian-born Mohamed Tatai, 57, was indicted more than two years ago on a charge relating to “public verbal provocation to hatred or violence” and for allegedly “inciting discrimination, hatred or violence.” The charge followed an investigation into a sermon he gave in December 2017.

A lawyer for CRIF, the representative organisation of the French Jewish community, confirmed on 5th January that Mr Tatai was being prosecuted, though no date has been set for the trial.

In his sermon, Mr Tatai allegedly cited a saying attributed to Muhammad that “on Judgment Day the Muslims will fight and kill the Jews.” Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) obtained video footage of the sermon.

Lawyers for Mr Tatai said that they believed that the charges against him would not stand up in court. In a statement, they claimed that Mr Tatai had “always been on good terms with the representatives of the Jewish community,” and that he had “largely explained” the meaning of his sermon and the “total exclusion of any incitement to hatred”.

This city in south-west France was the site of arguably one of the worst atrocities against French Jews when n Islamist on a “terror spree” attacked a Jewish school in 2012, shooting dead three young children and a teacher.  

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Jewish cemetery in Madrid targeted by antisemitic vandals

A Jewish cemetery in Madrid was vandalised with antisemitic words and slogans on 23rd December.

Graffiti declaring “Dead Jew, good Jew” and “Murdering Jews, we will hang you” were daubed on walls at the entrance to the small Jewish section of the cemetery in a suburb of the Spanish capital. A wooden gate was spray-painted with the German word Raus (“out”), which has strong Holocaust connotations, and a Star of David with a line through it.

Esteban Ibarra, the President of a leading Spanish anti-racism organisation, called on the Madrid Public Prosecutor to make greater efforts to find the perpetrators and to punish them for “a crime against fundamental rights,” which carries a penalty of up to four years in prison under the Spanish criminal code.

Mr Ibarra expressed fears that the desecration may have been carried out by a “neo-Nazi organisation”. He also expressed concern that it was a sign of growing antisemitism in Europe as it took place in the same week that a synagogue in Bulgaria and and other European monuments were targeted.

The Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain “strongly condemned” the desecration and urged the authorities to “pursue and convict the perpetrators”.

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Italian politician trivialises Star of David in anti-vaccine tweet

A prominent Italian political personality tweeted an edited image of a Star of David which appeared to represent an identification badge, akin to those used in Nazi-era Germany, for individuals who would choose to abstain from the COVID-19 vaccination.

Francesca Donato sent the tweet on 31st December 2020.

Ms Donato was elected as a member of the European Parliament for the League political party in 2019 and currently participates in the Democracy and Identity group in the Parliament. She is also the President of Eurexit, an Italian eurosceptic think tank.

The tweet, which received significant backlash, was captioned: “We started from #everthingwillbealright and we have come to the point where they propose stuff like this” in reference to the perceived stigmatisation of ‘anti-vaxxers’.

Following public outcry across several of her social media platforms, the tweet was deleted. Ms Donato has not commented upon the recent incident.

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Desecrations at two Jewish cemeteries in Alsace as Christian graves near Paris are also daubed with swastikas

Two Jewish cemeteries in the Alsace region of France, close to the German border, were desecrated within hours of one another on 29th December

Police are investigating after 107 graves were desecrated with swastikas and antisemitic slogans in a Jewish cemetery in the town of Westhoffen near Strasbourg. A few hours earlier, similar desecrations were discovered at a Jewish cemetery in the nearby town of Schaffhouse-sur-Zorn.  

On a visit to the area, President Emmanuel Macron told community leaders that it was “important” to be with them.

On Twitter, French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner denounced the desecrations as “egregious,” and said that everything was being done to ensure that the perpetrators were “caught and dealt with”. In February, more than 90 graves were desecrated at the Quatzenheim Jewish cemetery north-west of Strasbourg.

France has the largest Jewish community in Europe, and official statistics reveal a rise in antisemitic incidents. Security specialists have now been called in to help protect the cemeteries.

In a separate incident, some 60 Christian graves were desecrated with swastikas and “strange” inscriptions at the municipal cemetery in the French city of Fontainebleau, near Paris. According to the Fontainebleau prosecutor’s office, the neighbouring Jewish cemetery was untouched.

Fontainebleau Mayor Frederic Valletoux shared pictures of the desecrations on Twitter and said that, as well as the swastikas, some gravestones had been vandalised with “strange” inscriptions such as “Biobananas” and “Charles”. Biobananas is allegedly a reference to “Shoananas,” an offensive word combining “Shoah” and “pineapple” created by convicted French antisemite Dieudonne. “Charles” is believed to be a reference to French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which was attacked by Islamists in 2015.

On social media, the Deputy Mayor of Paris, Audrey Pulvar described the desecration as “an antisemitic act” that belonged nowhere.

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Bulgaria’s oldest synagogue daubed with antisemitic graffiti

Bulgaria’s most historic synagogue has been daubed with antisemitic slogans.

The perpetrators, who claim to belong to Antifa Bulgaria, daubed the walls of the Zion Synagogue in Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s oldest synagogue, during the weekend of 20th December.

The graffiti reportedly read “free Palestine” and equated the Israeli Government with the Nazis, in breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism.

Shalom, the organisation that represents Bulgarian Jewry, condemned the vandalism.

According to the Sofia Globe, nine incidents of antisemitism were reported in Bulgaria in 2019, none of which has resulted in a conviction.

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Ukraine International Airlines must compensate Israeli passengers over racial slurs, court rules

An Israeli court has agreed that two Jewish passengers were subjected to antisemitic abuse by ground staff of Ukraine International Airlines (UIA).

A Small Claims Court in Rishon LeZion, Central Israel, ruled that UIA must pay compensation over the incident in April 2019 when the passengers took a UIA flight from Vienna to Tel Aviv.

The two were allegedly ridiculed and subjected to racial slurs by ground staff after trying to switch items between pieces of luggage to avoid an excess-baggage fee. One comment, allegedly made in English by UIA personnel, was: “Why do Jews always have a problem about paying?” Another comment was: “Only €60 and the Jews have a problem about paying.” UIA ground staff were allegedly also overheard joking and making remarks in German.

The Israeli passengers were prevented from boarding their flight. UIA claimed that this was due to the excess baggage fee, but the court accepted the passengers’ claim that it was due to the flight being overbooked.

The court ordered the airline to pay a total 5,000 shekels (£1,145) in compensation for verbal abuse and a delay in receiving their baggage. UIA denied the claims and alleged that the passengers behaved badly.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Four arrested in Paris after antisemitic attack on Jewish family listening to Hebrew songs in the car

French police have arrested four people suspected of an antisemitic hate crime, after they allegedly verbally abused a Jewish family and threw bottles at the car in which the family was seated.

Initial media reports said that the incident happened at 20:40 on Thursday 17th December in the northern Paris suburb of Aubervilliers when the unnamed perpetrators – two adults and two minors – screamed antisemitic abuse at the unnamed family, including “f**k the Jews.” They also  rocked the car back and forth and hurled bottles at it. Prior to the assault, the family was listening to music including songs in Hebrew.

On the following day, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin wrote on Twitter: “Yesterday night, during Chanukah, a family from Aubervilliers was assaulted because they are Jewish. In France, in 2020.”

He noted that the perpetrators had been apprehended “very swiftly” by police and would “be punished in relation to the seriousness of these facts.”

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Czech far-right youth group uses anti-Jewish trope and caricature in anti-vaccine campaign

An antisemitic tweet was posted by the youth wing of the Czech Republic’s far-right Workers Social Justice Party (DSSS) as part of its campaign to discourage vaccinations against COVID-19.

The tweet, featuring an anti-Jewish caricature, said: “We will not allow ourselves to be vaccinated against COVID-19! Those globalising bastards can blackmail us all they like!”

The Workers Youth organisation (DM) has frequently used Nazi images or propaganda in its posters, on its Facebook page and in other promotional items. The Czech Interior Ministry categorises the DSSS as one of the extreme right-wing parties. The DM and the DSSS share the same registered address.

The DSSS came into existence after its precursor, the DS was dissolved in 2010.

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Guilty verdicts for fourteen in Paris terror trial over Charlie Hebdo and Hypercacher attacks

A French court on Wednesday found fourteen defendants guilty of aiding two terrorist attacks that killed seventeen people in Paris in January 2015, including four people at a kosher supermarket.

Amedy Coulibaly, the perpetrator of the Hypercacher supermarket slayings, identified victims as Jewish and declared that he was murdering the people he hated most: “The Jews and the French.” Mr Coulibaly was killed in a shoot-out with police.

The sentences ranged from four years to life imprisonment with the heaviest sentence for Mohamed Belhoucine, believed to be dead in Syria, for “mentoring” Mr Coulibaly. Ali Riza Polat was sentenced to 30 years for  his “essential role” in the preparation of the attacks. Three other defendants were tried in absentia, including Mr Coulibaly’s wife, Hayat Boumeddiene, who was sentenced to 30 years.

The attack on the kosher supermarket came two days after the terror attack at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

The trial, which began in September, provided moments of heavy emotion. At the kosher supermarket, Yohan Cohen, 20, lay alive and in agony after being shot. A witness said that Mr Coulibaly asked hostages if they wanted him to “finish off” the young man to silence him.  

The widow of Philippe Braham, another victim, told the court that she had to explain to her three young children that “a bad man killed your Daddy”.

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Antisemitic graffiti discovered outside school in Italy’s Lazio region

Antisemitic graffiti was sprayed on the ground outside a school in Italy’s Lazio region.

Referencing Lazio football club, it read “Laziale ebreo” which roughly translates as “Lazio-supporting Jews”.

Last year, similar graffiti, which also featured a swastika, was found nearby.

The head of the Lazio Region Nicola Zingaretti expressed his concern and said that he hoped the perpetrators would be found.

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Toronto radio station severs ties with controversial Polish broadcaster

A Canadian radio station has cut its long-standing ties with a leading controversial Polish broadcaster over its alleged antisemitism.

In a move welcomed by Jewish groups, Toronto AM station CJMR1320 last week notified Polish Catholic broadcaster Radio Maryja of the immediate cancelation of its contract.

CJMR vice-president Matt Caine noted that the Polish broadcaster had failed to respond adequately to detailed complaints about its portrayal of Jews and Judaism, and that its Canadian representative had simply dismissed these as “inaccurate.”

B’nai Brith Canada, which had provided evidence of Radio Maryja’s alleged “vitriolic antisemitic content,” apparently including conspiracy theories and references to Jews as “greedy,” said that it was “extremely pleased” by the decision.

Former deputy premier of Alberta, Thomas Lukaszuk, said that by “eliminating the often offensive Radio Maryja” the Toronto radio station was “silencing” division in Canada.

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Life in prison for Halle synagogue attacker described by prosecutor as “one of the most repulsive antisemitic acts since World War II.”

A gunman who attacked a synagogue in the German city of Halle on Yom Kippur last year has been sentenced to life in prison for what the prosecutor described as “one of the most repulsive antisemitic acts since World War II.”

Far-right extremist Stephan Balliet, 28, killed two people in a rampage after a failed attack on the synagogue in Halle, eastern Germany, last year. Announcing the verdict on Monday morning, Judge Ursula Mertens said that Mr Balliet had repeatedly tried to justify his “cowardly attack” during the five-month trial. As well as life imprisonment, his sentence carries an acknowledgment of the gravity of his crime, ruling out an early release.

On Yom Kippur – 9th October 2019 – Mr Balliet tried to enter the city’s main synagogue where 52 worshippers were marking the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. After failing to get inside, he shot a passerby 40-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man in a nearby kebab shop.

Charged with the attempted murder of 68 people, Holocaust denial and incitement, Mr Balliet went on trial in July. During the trial, held for security reasons at the regional court building in Magdeburg, he made little effort to defend his actions, repeating his denial of the Holocaust, spouting racist and misogynist conspiracy theories and railing against migrants.

Mr Balliet was not a member of an organised terrorist cell, but had joined neo-Nazi online forums. During testimony that led to the judge threatening to exclude him from the courtroom for abusive and racist language, he claimed that being “on the bottom rung of society” justified the attack.

The head of Germany’s Central Council of Jews, Josef Schuster, said the verdict marked an important day for Germany. In a statement, he said the verdict made it clear “that murderous hatred of Jews meets with no tolerance” adding that “up to the end, the attacker showed no remorse, but kept to his hate-filled antisemitic and racist world view.”

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Torrent of ugly antisemitic abuse as Miss France runner-up reveals father is Israeli

French police are investigating after a contestant in the Miss France beauty competition was subjected to a torrent of antisemitic abuse when she revealed that her father is Israeli.

Representing Provence, April Benayoun came second in the national pageant. After saying that she had an Israeli father, she was subjected to a torrent of antisemitic abuse. Her mother is Serbo-Croatian.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said that police and gendamerie had been “mobilised” to investigate, while the minister for Citizenship, Marlene Schiappa, said that a report would be sent to the Public Prosecutor.

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EU ruling upholding Belgian ban on Jewish ritual slaughter curtails fundamental rights of Jews, say campaigners

Jewish groups have warned that laws banning Jewish ritual slaughter could appear all across Europe following a ruling by a European Court of Justice (ECJ).

The ECJ ruling, which was released on 17th December, upholds a Belgian ban on ritual slaughter methods by Jews and Muslims. European Jewish groups claim it sets a precedent that will allow authorities to order the pre-stunning of animals which is not permitted in ritual slaughter.

The ruling follows a 2017 ban by two Belgian regions of slaughter without pre-stunning. A legal challenge to the bans, filed by Belgium’s main Jewish communal body, was sent by the Constitutional Court to the ECJ to determine if the bans were lawful. The ECJ ruling directly opposes an opinion given in September by Gerard Hogan, the European Advocate-General who said that EU states were “obliged to respect the deeply-held religious beliefs of adherents to the Muslim and Jewish faiths” by allowing ritual slaughter of animals.

Shechita UK Campaign Director, Shimon Cohen said they were “disappointed” with the ruling, and would be looking to “understand the long-term implications.” He said the ruling would be “very significant” for UK Jews “even post-Brexit.”

Rabbi Menachem Margolin, chairman of the European Jewish Association (EJA), said it was “a sad day for European Jewry.”

The President of the European Union of Jewish Students, Bini Guttmann, expressed his shock to the JC, suggesting it would “make Jewish life in Europe as we know it impossible.” 

Allowing the prohibition of kosher slaughter, said Mr Guttman, was “a clear signal that the fundamental rights of Jews can be curtailed in the EU.”  

Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, president of the Conference of European Rabbis claimed the judgment “flies in the face of recent statements” that Jewish life was “to be treasured and respected” and said the bans had already led to shortages of kosher meat in Belgium.

 “We are told by European leaders that they want Jewish communities to live and be successful in Europe,” noted Chief Rabbi Goldschmidt, “But they provide no safeguards for our way of life.”

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CAA files complaint with Netherlands prosecutor’s office over Wiley’s antisemitic tirade launched from Rotterdam

Lawyers acting for Campaign Against Antisemitism have filed a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecution Service in the Netherlands, which is where grime artist Wiley was located when he launched his tirade against Jews.

Ron Eisenmann, a partner at Eisenmann & Ravestijn, filed documents on behalf of Campaign Against Antisemitism seeking Wiley’s prosecution in the Netherlands over his antisemitic incitement. We are extremely grateful to Mr Eisenmann and his firm for agreeing to represent Campaign Against Antisemitism on a pro bono basis.

On 24th July 2020, the rapper Richard Kylea Cowie, who is known as Wiley, spent days engaged in an escalating rant on social media against Jews. After likening Jews to the Ku Klux Klan and claiming that Jews had cheated him and were “snakes”, Wiley tweeted that Jews should “hold some corn”, a slang expression meaning that they should be shot. He added: “Jewish community you deserve it”. He then also called on “black people” to go to “war” with Jews.

Wiley repeatedly evoked conspiracy theories that Jews were responsible for the slave trade and that modern-day Jews are in fact imposters who usurped black people — a conspiracy theory that has incited acts of terrorism against Jews, such as a shooting in Jersey City and a stabbing attack in Monsey, NY during the festival of Chanukah last December.

In the days that followed, Wiley continued to rail against Jews on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Following discussions with Campaign Against Antisemitism, a major 48-hour boycott of Twitter and Instagram in which we participated, and our projection of antisemitic tweets onto Twitter’s London headquarters, which then went viral, Twitter, Facebook (which owns Instagram), Google (which owns YouTube) and TikTok agreed to remove Wiley from their platforms, depriving him of access to his nearly one million social media followers.

Campaign Against Antisemitism immediately reported Wiley to the Metropolitan Police Service, but in September the police force confirmed to us that Wiley was not in the UK at the time of his antisemitic tirade. Under Home Office rules, that means that the Metropolitan Police must give primacy to police in the jurisdiction where Wiley was at the time.

In anticipation of this development, Campaign Against Antisemitism had already appointed Mr Eisenmann and begun to prepare our case.

We are grateful to the Community Security Trust, which was able to provide us with evidence showing that Wiley was in Rotterdam at the time of his antisemitic abuse.

Campaign Against Antisemitism is continuing its response to this incident, including:

  • Filing our criminal complaint against Wiley in the Netherlands;
  • Continuing to meet with executives from Twitter, Facebook and Google to address their response to antisemitism on their platforms;
  • Working with the Cabinet Office’s Honours Forfeiture Committee to ensure that Wiley’s MBE is revoked;
  • Seeking a change in policy so that racists are automatically stripped of their honours in future (please help by signing our Parliamentary petition);
  • Urging the Government to bring forward legislation to regulate social networks and force them to remove racist incitement (please help by signing our Parliamentary petition), which has recently borne fruit; and
  • Working with the music industry to remove Wiley’s awards and ensure that he is shunned for his racism.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Wiley used his social media following to attempt to ignite a race war between black people and Jews. He accused Jews of ‘doing anything to ruin a black man’s life’ and called for them to be shot. His brazen calls for racist violence were made whilst on Dutch soil and we will use all of the means at our disposal to ensure that he answers to a Dutch judge. Antisemites do not stop at national borders and neither will we in pursuing them. We will always do whatever it takes to defend the Jewish community. It is why we are here.”

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Graz unveils antisemitism initiative as Austria increases budget to safeguard Jews

The southern Austrian city of Graz has unveiled an initiative to combat antisemitism following two antisemitic incidents earlier this year.

The plan, “Together Against Antisemitism,” was launched at the Graz synagogue on Friday by Austria’s EU Minister, Karoline Edtstadler, and Jewish community President Elie Rosen. It follows recent antisemitic incidents in which the synagogue was daubed with the slogan “Free Palestine”. Just two days later Mr Rosen was attacked by an assailant wielding a wooden club, after warning of a rise in “left-wing and anti-Israel antisemitism”.

Ms Edtstadler described the initiative as a “struggle for society as a whole”, noting the need to “remain vigilant” and “carry everyone with us”.

Mr Rosen explained that the antisemitism initiative was built on education, making schoolchildren more aware of the culture and history of Jews in the region and training teachers to counter antisemitism in the classroom.

The Graz initiative follows a law passed by the Austrian Council of Ministers which increases the Government’s financial support for the Jewish community, to be used for “the protection of Jewish institutions” as well as the promotion of inter-religious dialogue and the preservation of Jewish cultural heritage.

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Netherlands announces antisemitism national co-ordinator following rise in anti-Jewish racism

The Netherlands is to establish a national co-ordinator to fight antisemitism early in 2021 in response to a rise in anti-Jewish racism in recent years.

Speaking at a Chanukah celebration for leaders of the Jewish community, the Minister of Justice and Security, Ferdinand Grapperhaus, said that the coordinator would be appointed early next year to advise the Ministry on the best way to combat antisemitism, as well as to ensure better cooperation between stakeholders.

Earlier this year, the Lower House of the Dutch Parliament called for an appointment of this type following a rise in antisemitic incidents.

Announcing the new role, Mr Grapperhaus said that antisemitism had become increasingly visible in recent years. “Coronavirus and economic hardship are a breeding ground for conspiracy theories against the Jewish community,” he said. He also noted that “the many-headed monster of antisemitism” felt at home in many places.” The Minister added: “We must not leave this battle to the Jewish community alone.”

The Government announced last week that it was working to establish a National Coordinator against Discrimination and Racism.

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“Attention, attention. The cancer Jews need to leave the train now or we’ll blow you all up”, passengers told on Belgian train

Police in Belgium are looking for four men who hijacked a train’s public address system to abuse Jewish passengers and try to force them to leave the train.

The men took control of the announcement system one afternoon last week on a train travelling between Antwerp and Mechelen. They threatened to explode the train unless Jewish passengers left.

According to witnesses the men spoke in Flemish and said: “Attention, attention. The cancer Jews need to leave the train now or we’ll blow you all up.”

Michael Freilich, a member of Belgium’s Chamber of Representatives, has filed Parliamentary questions about the incident. As well as asking why the perpetrators were not caught by train security guards, Mr Freilich asked the Transportation Ministry to explain how the men gained access to the PA system in the first place and what can be done to prevent a recurrence. The ministry has two weeks to respond.

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“No place for antisemitism” says Ukraine foreign minister after vandalism of Kyiv menorah

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister has condemned the antisemitic vandalism of a menorah in Kyiv, saying that there was “no place for antisemitism” in Ukraine.

The apparent perpetrator, Andrey Rachkov, videoed himself pushing over the giant menorah on the first night of Chanukah and posted the video on social media, declaring that it was “how you need to handle strangers engaged in the usurpation of power, occupation of territories, genocide.”

He allegedly attempted to topple another outdoor menorah but was unable to do so. He has been charged with hooliganism and could face up to five years in prison.

The United Jewish Community of Ukraine said that it considered Mr Rachkov’s “actions and statements to be antisemitism” and called on law enforcement agencies to “investigate objectively”.

On Twitter, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that he condemned “in the strongest terms” the “brutal” attack on the menorah and welcomed the “swift reaction by law enforcement agencies” in identifying the perpetrator. He added: “No place for antisemitism in Ukraine.”

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Germany drops investigation into “possibly the last” Nazi guard, who is currently living in America

Germany has dropped an investigation into a Nazi guard expected to be “possibly the last” suspect allegedly complicit in the Holocaust.

Friedrich Karl Berger, 95, has been living in the US since 1959. He was accused of aiding and abetting the killing of prisoners as a guard at two concentration camps as well as overseeing a brutal evacuation march.

In March, a court ordered Berger’s deportation saying that he was “part of the SS machinery of oppression.”

However, German prosecutors claimed that American investigations had not found further evidence or been able to link Mr Berger “to any specific act of killing”, adding that no further information could be expected from a hearing in Germany.

Mr Berger was allegedly a guard in forced labour camps. Though not extermination camps, thousands died due to horrific living conditions and malnutrition.

In 1979, the US government created the Office of Special Investigations to find Nazis. According to its director, the unit helped to bring about 67 deportations, with Mr Berger’s case expected to be “possibly the last.” The most recent such deportation was of a 95-year-old former SS guard in 2018.

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Norway cuts aid to Palestinian Authority over antisemitism and incitement to violence in its educational materials

The Norwegian Parliament has endorsed a cut in aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) due to ongoing concerns over antisemitism and incitement to violence against Jews in its educational material.

According to IMPACT-se, an organisation that monitors hate speech in regional education, the materials continue to contain racism, antisemitism and incitement to violence, despite promises of improvements by the PA. As a result, the Norwegian Government is cutting 30 million Krone (£2.6 million) in aid.

The Progress Party led the push to reduce aid, with one MP saying “not a single Krone should go to Palestinian education” until the PA materials stopped containing “hate speech.” He also regretted that it had taken “so many years to take a strict line.”  

“The Palestinian school curriculum abounds with calls for violence and hatred against Israel and for martyrdom to be glorified,” noted Sylvia Listhaug, deputy leader of the Progress Party. “It is quite clear that Norway cannot support this.”

A Christian Democrat MP and Foreign Affairs Committee member Geir Toskedal said that he and his colleagues had long “been uneasy about both [the] textbooks and teaching programmes.”

Last June, Norway’s foreign minister, Ine Eriksen Søreide, announced that funds earmarked for the PA’s education sector would be withheld until changes were made to schoolbooks. In December the Norwegian Parliament urged the PA to remove violent, racist and antisemitic materials from its school curriculum, or face funding cuts.

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Latest insanity plea reflects reluctance by French to confront antisemitism

A man who has been found unfit to stand trial after telling a French court that he “wanted to kill a Jew” is the latest defendant to use successfully an insanity defence for an alleged antisemitic crime in France.

The unnamed twenty-year-old defendant told a judge that before the attack on his neighbour in April 2019 in Bourdon, northern France, “robots” had told him “to kill a Jew”. The man stabbed his 58-year-old neighbour, who is not Jewish. The victim had only moderate injuries and survived.

The defendant was deemed not criminally responsible for his actions and ordered to remain at a psychiatric hospital.

Last year, a French Appeals Court made a similar judgment regarding a man who had killed a Jewish woman in her home while shouting Koranic verses and calling her a “demon.” Despite being deemed “antisemitic” by the judge, the man was said to be in a “delirious episode” brought on by marijuana.

French Jewish organisations claim that these cases reflect a reluctance by the French judiciary to confront antisemitism.

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Antisemitic hate speech almost doubles in Italy, according to new report

Antisemitic hate speech has almost doubled in Italy since 2019, according to the latest report by Italian human rights monitor, Vox.

Vox’s latest report focuses on social media and reveals that hate incidents had decreased in number overall but had also become “more radical.” However the report also shows that antisemitic hate speech has increased in absolute terms from 10.01% of the total of negative tweets in 2019 to 18.45% of the total in 2020.

What was “particularly worrying”, stated the report, was “the rising tendency over the years, from 2.2% in 2016” to the current level.

The latest report, which analysed 1,304,537 tweets posted between March and September 2020, also reveals that Jews are second only to women as targets of hate speech.

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Nazi-era phonetic alphabet set for erasure

A version of Germany’s phonetic alphabet which was adopted in the Nazi era is set to be removed following a campaign by activists.

Alongside the current worldwide phonetic alphabet – also known as the NATO or aviation alphabet – Germany has its own phonetic alphabet. Created in 1890 it was amended in 1934 in accordance with Nazi ideology.

The Nazis changed 14 terms, including names derived from Hebrew or considered particularly Jewish. Also, ‘Nathan’ became ‘Nordpol’ (North Pole) allegedly symbolising the master race and Ypsilon became ‘Ypres,’ famously known as the WWI battle where Germans first used poison gas.

After WWII, Ypres was changed back to Ypsilon but Nordpol is still in use in the German alphabet today. 

Germany’s Institute for Standardisation (DIN) has, however, now agreed to remove the Nazi-era changes and to devise new terms for the problematic letters following a request from an activist based in Baden-Württemberg.

The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany welcomed the activist initiative, noting that it was “high time we freed ourselves from the language of the Nazis.”

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Monument to the Holocaust and synagogue desecrated in Larissa, Greece

A Holocaust monument has been vandalised and the wall of a synagogue desecrated in the Greek city of Larissa.

The latest in a string of such attacks in central Greece, the vandalism took place on 3rd December.

It was denounced by Greece’s Foreign Ministry which declared:  “This abhorrent act offends the memory of the victims of the Holocaust” and was not in line with the values of Greek society. “Such actions remind us of the need to be vigilant in defending our moral values against racism, hatred and bigotry,” continued the statement.

The Jewish Community of Larissa said that it believed that one perpetrator was responsible for both incidents.

The Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece (KISE) condemned the vandalism, saying it “exudes religious fanaticism and intolerance.”

Recent antisemitic incidents in Greece have included the desecration of a monument in Trikala in memory of Jews deported to Auschwitz as well as the desecration of Trikala’s Jewish cemetery. In 2019, a Jewish school in Athens was spray-painted with antisemitic slurs, while in January 2020 a monument commemorating the Jews of Thessaloniki was desecrated.

In 2019, shortly after taking office, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, of the New Democracy party said Greece would adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism in a bid to reduce antisemitism in the country.

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European Democrat Students adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism

The European Democrat Students (EDS) has passed a motion to tackle antisemitism through the adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism.

The pan-European official student organisation of the European People’s Party (EPP) announced the decision at the EDS Council meeting on 22nd November. The EDS represents over 1 million students and young people from 40 member organisations across 35 countries, and is currently one of the largest youth organisations operating in Europe.

Other youth parties and organisations across Europe are being called upon to follow the example of the EDS to reflect a zero tolerance for antisemitism.

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EU declaration on antisemitism notes rise in anti-Jewish racism and calls for adoption of International Definition on Antisemitism and harsher penalties for hate by member states

The European Union approved a declaration on antisemitism this week calling on member states to adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism if they have not yet done so.

The declaration, which acknowledges concern about the rise in antisemitic incidents and hate crime in Europe, was made by the EU Council this week. The Council, which comprises Government ministers from each EU member state, is expected to adopt the declaration formally later this month.

The declaration expresses concern about the rise in antisemitic incidents and hate crime and the “resurgence of conspiracy myths” especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also condemns “any form of antisemitism, intolerance or racist hatred” as “incompatible with the values and aims” of the EU,” and calls for action to combat these issues, including “effective prosecution.”

It also states that “illegal hate speech and terrorist content online must be removed promptly and consistently by internet service providers.”

Concerns have been raised, however, regarding the omission from the declaration safeguards for Jewish religious practices, which have been repeatedly under pressure in member states over the years, including recently in Finland.

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Norway to extradite suspect in 1982 antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish restaurant in Paris, France

The Norwegian government announced that the country is set to extradite a man to France who is suspected of being involved in a brutal attack that killed six people in a Jewish restaurant in Paris 38 years ago.

In addition to the six fatalities, at least twenty people were wounded in the bombing and shooting assault on the Jo Goldenberg restaurant that took place in August 1982.

In 2015, arrest warrants were issued against three former members of the Abu Nidal Organisation, a violent antisemitic group designated as a terrorist organisation by the United Kingdom, United States, European Union, Israel and elsewhere, in connection with the incident. The suspects were identified by an anonymous former member of the group.

One of the suspects, Walid Abdulrahama Abu Zayed, currently lives in Norway where he moved in the 1990s. Initially, Norwegian authorities rejected the extradition request in 2015 on the grounds that it would not extradite Norwegian citizens in the majority of cases.

However, the country has recently adopted new pan-European regulations and policy on arrests that meant that French prosecutors could seek to extradite the suspect for a second time. He was arrested, as a result, in September.

Mr Abu Zayed, now in his early 60s, has denied any involvement in the crime and claimed that he has never been to Paris.

The Ministry of Justice cleared him for extradition on 12th November, and following an unsuccessful appeal to the full Norwegian cabinet, it was announced on 27th November that Mr Abu Zayed will be be extradited to France.

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German soldiers suspected of involvement in antisemitic chat room

German authorities have uncovered a group of 26 soldiers suspected of involvement in a chat room with links to antisemitism, right-wing extremism and pornography.

The allegation, disclosed in a German Defence Ministry document, was described by one opposition politician as showing that claims of far-right sentiments in the German military being merely “isolated cases” was “just a fairy tale.”

According to the report, many of the 26 soldiers belong to a logistics unit in Neustadt am Ruebenberge in northern Germany. After the accusations became known in October, civilian and military prosecutors started investigations immediately. So far, three soldiers have been banned from the military.

The case is the latest far-right scandal to surface in the German military. In June, Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer disbanded a company of the elite KSK Special Forces after alleged recurring incidents involving the far-right.

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Assailant who attacked Jewish street artist in Strasbourg sentenced to six months by French court

A French court sentenced a man on 30th November to six months in prison after finding him guilty of attacking a Jewish graffiti artist in the city of Strasbourg, France.

The assault occurred on 26th August this year, when the artist was commissioned by the municipality to work on a project in the centre of the city. Two attackers noticed him wearing a t-shirt with the names of multiple countries and cities, including Israel, and verbally insulted and jostled him. One of the perpetrators said to the artist, “You are a Jew, you have no place here”, and proceeded to demand he change his t-shirt.

The victim changed his clothing and, upon return to the site, he was confronted again by one of the men, who forcibly took one of the paint canisters and graffitied offensive language and slogans across the ground, including “Forbidden to the Jews” with several expletives.

The incident was reported to the Strasbourg City Council and a complaint was filed with the local authorities.

The defendant, with previous convictions for violence and intimidation, later expressed remorse in court for his actions and the subsequent distress caused to the artist and the wider community. He claimed that he had undergone extreme emotional stress as a result of several issues in his personal life at the time, and had watched too many videos online about the Middle East.

In his testimony to the court, the artist described the incident as “the worst three hours of my life.”

As well as the six month prison sentence, the 38-year-old culprit has been ordered to pay damages of €500 to the vicim and a further €1,000 to SOS Racisme and Licra, two anti-racism organisations operating in France.

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Cemetery vandals torment Moldova’s Jewish community

The Chief of Rabbi of Moldova has disclosed that between five and ten vandals desecrated the Jewish cemetery in the nation’s capital, Chisinau, over at least three nights in late October.

Several tombstones were destroyed and defaced with offensive graffiti and fascist imagery.

The majority of the Jewish population, approximately 12,000 of the 15,000 total in the country, live in the capital.

Despite the gradual decrease of the community, the Chief Rabbi maintains that the community still experiences extreme hostility, antisemitic hatred and mockery. He recounted, “I walk dressed like this [as a rabbi] every time and everywhere. At least five times per week, I hear jokes in the street about me. In this regard, nothing [has] changed.”

The Jewish cemetery has been targeted and vandalised in the same month for the previous three years, however it has recently been adopted by the Culture Ministry. In October 2018, the Government announced the opening of a Museum of Jewish History attached to the cemetery.

The museum was intended to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust, combat antisemitism and to promote an education on culture, tolerance and peace, however little investment has been allocated and the Government is yet to construct the proposed building, security and exhibitions.

Following the recent incident, the Chief Rabbi criticised local police for responding seven days after the vandalism first occurred. Local authorities have subsequently issued a public commitment to identify and locate the perpetrators, who risk a fine or a year’s imprisonment if convicted in relation to the damage.

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Rabbi assaulted by knife-wielding woman in antisemitic attack in Vienna, Austria

A rabbi was reportedly kicked and attacked at knifepoint in Vienna by a woman who stole his kippah while shouting antisemitic abuse.

The incident occurred on the afternoon of 26th November when the woman, described as around 50-years-old and wearing a grey coat, approached the rabbi and took out the weapon from her handbag. She subsequently kicked the victim in the leg, knocked his hat from his head and tore off his kippah before fleeing from the scene. It has been reported that the attacker screamed “slaughter all Jews” throughout the incident.

Local police attended the scene, however they were unable to trace the suspect or gain a clear description of her. The rabbi reportedly told the authorities that he had suffered no physical injuries.

The country’s Interior Minister described the crime as an “attack on Jewish life in Vienna”, and expressed a zero tolerance for antisemitism as the case was taken over by Austria’s counter-terrorism and extremism agency.

Across the capital, residents have expressed concern at the alarming spate of recent attacks. On 3rd November, two gunmen opened fire near to Vienna’s central synagogue and three people were killed with several others injured. Although it is not presently believed that this incident was motivated by antisemitic sentiments, the Interior Minister has reassured residents that there will be greater protection of synagogues and “all measures” are currently being taken to ensure a similar incident does not occur.

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German antisemitism envoy sounds alarm after girl compares social distancing with the experience of Holocaust victim Anne Frank

A German government official has raised concerns that antisemitism is emerging as a common and unifying ideology among protestors against pandemic lockdown measures after an eleven-year-old German girl compared holding a socially-distanced birthday party with the plight of the Holocaust victim Anne Frank.

The child’s comparison, made at a protest, has provoked further concern from officials that children are being intentionally targeted by antisemites as a supposedly effective means to broach controversial topics. During the speech that the child gave in the city of Karlsruhe, a crowd of more than a thousand people listened as they protested coronavirus prevention policies.

Far-right symbolism and imagery, used as an attempt to draw parallels with the Holocaust, have been increasingly adopted in the movement to resist social distancing measures and protective masks.

Felix Klein, appointed as head of the government’s efforts to combat antisemitism in the country, has stated that active hatred against the Jewish community has drastically risen during the coronavirus outbreak. Antisemitic conspiracy theories have been widely shared and spread by “mystics, peace activists, so-called ‘Reich citizens’ and right-wing extremists” to mobilise support for future protests.

Mr Klein has suggested that such trivialisation of the crimes of the Nazi regime ridicules its victims and undermines the culture of remembrance in Germany.

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German far-right barred from holding “Stop Zionism!” demonstration at site of synagogue destroyed by Nazis

Authorities in the northern German city of Braunschweig acted recently to prevent a neo-Nazi group from holding a demonstration at the site of a synagogue destroyed by the Nazis in 1938.

The demonstration, held under the banner “Stop Zionism!”, was promoted on social media by the far-right party Die Rechte with other anti-Zionist and antisemitic slogans. The Party told supporters to gather beside a plaque commemorating the synagogue at a specific time – 19:33-19:45 – that was also symbolic, representing the years of the Third Reich.

Some politicians had called for an outright ban. Christos Pantazis, a state representative of the Centre-left SPD Party described the demonstration as “disgusting and repulsive!” and tweeted: “With this targeted provocation, this micro-party reveals its unconstitutional sentiments and should be forbidden.”

At a meeting last week, city administrators barred the neo-Nazis from gathering at the specific place and time but gave permission for a demonstration elsewhere at a different time. It also banned the use of torches and said coronavirus protocols must be observed.

Less than a month ago, the far-right NPD held a demonstration in Braunschweig, attended by around 50 participants.

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Hungarian Government official under fire after claiming “Europe is George Soros’ gas chamber”

A Hungarian Government official has caused outrage after comparing a prominent Jewish political activist and philanthropist and Holocaust survivor to Hitler in an article published over the weekend.

Hungarian ministerial commissioner Szilard Demeter made the comments about George Soros, a financier and controversial activist, in an opinion article published on 28th November in the pro-Government outlet Origo. The article addressed a conflict over the European Union’s next budget, which member states Hungary and Poland are blocking. Mr Demeter referred to the two countries as “the new Jews.”

“Europe is George Soros’ gas chamber,” Mr Demeter wrote. “Poison gas flows from the capsule of a multicultural open society.” Mr Soros founded the Open Society Foundations, a grant-making network that has courted controversy over its political activities.

Mr Demeter, who is a ministerial commissioner and head of the state-owned Petofi Literary Museum in Budapest, was appointed by Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, to oversee culture in the country.

Mr Demeter compared Mr Soros to Hitler, calling him “the liberal Führer” and said that Mr Soros’s “liber-aryan army deifies him more than did Hitler’s own.”

The article drew outrage from Hungary’s Jewish community, with one group calling it “tasteless” and “unforgivable” and describing the article as “a textbook case of the relativisation of the Holocaust” and “therefore incompatible with the Government’s claim of zero tolerance for antisemitism.”

Prime Minister Orban is facing calls to fire Mr Demeter.

Mr Soros, the Hungarian-born Holocaust survivor, is a frequent target of Mr Orban’s Government for his political and philanthropic activities that favour liberal causes.

Mr Demeter responded to the backlash in a statement on Sunday, promising to withdraw the article. Acknowledging the criticism it had drawn, he said “the Nazi parallel could unintentionally hurt the memory of the victims.”

There is plenty of scope to criticise or support Mr Soros’ activities without resorting to appalling antisemitic tropes and innuendo or for diminishing the Holocaust, in order to do so.

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22% of hate crimes in Europe in 2019 targeted Jews, according to new report

A new report has shown that antisemitic incidents accounted for a total of 22% of all recorded hate crimes last year in Europe, despite Jews comprising less than 1% of the population.

The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODHIR) of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) published its annual report on hate crimes across the continent. The data provided within the report, titled “2019 Hate Crime Data”, is from 5,952 incidents recorded in Europe, Russia and Central Asia.

Antisemitic acts comprised 1,311 of the incidents in the report. The category is the second-largest figure of incidents after the 2,371 incidents in the broader racism and xenophobia category.

Several of the reported incidents included extreme violence against Jewish victims, insults and derogatory terms, and vandalism or criminal damage in numerous countries.

The ODHIR maintains its figures are not entirely definitive and therefore may be significantly lower than the number of hate crimes committed and recorded in Europe.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.

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Politician with history of controversial comments nominated to Austrian Senate

A politician with a history of controversial comments has reportedly been nominated to join the Austrian Senate.

Johannes Hübner served as the Foreign Affairs Spokesman for the Austrian Freedom Party (AFP) until 2017 when he launched a campaign for a seat in the Austrian Parliament. The campaign was subsequently discontinued following released recordings of him at a far-right event making controversial comments.

During the event in question, Mr Hübner referred to the drafter of the Austrian constitution as a ‘Kohn’, a common phrase used by the Nazis throughout the 1930s to discredit and undermine constitutional scholars of Jewish descent. He also claimed that former Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern, who received a major award from the Jewish community, has associations with freemasonry, which is a popular antisemitic motif.

Mr Hübner further asserted that the Austrian newspapers always mention the AFP in the context of National Socialism on the basis of claims by a “so-called Holocaust survivor.”

Several calls have been made for the Freedom Party to rescind the decision to appoint Mr Hübner in such a respectable position.

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New jail term for convicted French Holocaust denier

A French court has jailed a notorious French Holocaust denier for four months following his latest conviction.

Vincent Reynouard, 51, was jailed for four months on 25th November by a court in Paris. 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 Lalin, received a 17-month-jail term in September.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers. 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 Euro 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 Lalin are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

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Proposed Knesset Law would create memorial day for the victims of the Spanish Inquisition

A new law being proposed by Israel’s Parliament would create an official Day to Commemorate the Victims of the Inquisition.

During the Spanish Inquisition in the Early Modern period, forced Jewish converts to Christianity were brutally persecuted.

The bill, proposed by Member of Knesset Michal Cotler-Wunsh, would create a memorial day to be held annually on 1st November, the date that the Spanish Inquisition was formally established in 1478. It has been suggested that the day would be marked with educational activities that teach on the shared history of Jews with Sephardic ancestry, as well as the mass expulsion of the Jewish population from Spain and Portugal. The Minister of Diaspora Affairs will also host an official state ceremony to mark the occasion and commemorate the victims of the Catholic persecution.

The President of the Hispanic-Jewish Foundation has maintained that Spain and Latin America are gaining further understanding of their roots and influence on Jewish traditions. He stated that it is therefore important that the Inquisition is remembered as “pure religious fanaticism and intolerance” with significant, lasting effects for those whose ancestors were subjected to the oppression.

Co-sigantories to the bill include numerous Knesset members from a variety of Israel’s major political parties, including members of the governing coalition.

Ms Cutler Wunsh stated that the bill will “create a day of memory and reminder in the Knesset for us to recognise this tragic event in our collective history and learn from it, in order to ensure ‘never again’ in a world of ‘again and again’.”

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Swastikas carved into Jewish headstones in Haren, Germany

Swastikas have been discovered etched into the headstones and spray-painted across memorials at a Jewish cemetery in Haren, Germany.

On 17th November, the vandalism was reported to the local authorities. According to the evidence, however, it is believed that numerous carvings may have been chiseled into the gravestones several months ago, and many remain clearly visible. With rising incidents targeting the Jewish community in the country, the police have described the recent desecration as overtly antisemitic and the case has been taken over by state security.

In Chemnitz, a similar incident occurred in which a swastika was spray-painted on memorial “stumbling stones”. The brass street tiles were placed at the former homes of Holocaust victims to commemorate and honour their lives.

A local politician has expressed growing concern at the many similar acts of vandalism across Germany that seek to disrespect and marginalise it’s Jewish residents.

Police investigating the recent vandalism on the Jewish cemetery are appealing to the public for any possible information on the crime and for witnesses to come forward to aid the identification of the perpetrators.

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Image credit: Jewish Community of Haren/Eli Nahum/Monitoring Antisemitism Worldwide

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Antisemitic graffiti sprayed on walls in French city of Mulhouse

Antisemitic graffiti has reportedly appeared on walls in the French city of Mulhouse.

Graffiti first appeared in early November on walls near the centre of the city, which is located in Alsace in north-east France. This was quickly removed by municipal services.

But new graffiti has now been discovered in the same neighbourhood.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Outrage at Polish Embassy bid to “glorify” Nazi collaborator

Poland’s Embassy in the UK has been accused of “glorifying” a Polish nationalist politician believed to have collaborated with the Nazis.

A Polish anti-racist organisation has criticised the Embassy over its involvement in the restoration of the grave of Władysław Studnicki, who died in London in 1953.

Mr Studnicki espoused antisemitic views saying that Jews were “parasites on the healthy branch of the Polish tree.” He also proposed the forced removal of 100,000 Polish Jews every year to bring about the “de-Judaization” of Poland.

The row erupted after it was reported that a member of the Embassy’s political staff was involved in restoring Mr Studnicki’s grave in London and was actively promoting the project online. The Embassy official, Agata Supińska, said on Twitter that Studnicki  was “one of the greatest Polish thinkers of the 20th century,” who had not “been accorded respect and was forgotten for many years.”

In a statement, the Polish Embassy said that Ms Supińska “got involved in this project in a purely personal capacity” but that it was “supportive of her efforts to restore Studnicki’s grave,” adding that the efforts to restore the grave was a civic initiative.

 The Embassy statement went on to note that it supported “all grassroots civic initiatives aimed at preserving the memory of Poles and their achievements in Great Britain.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Windows smashed in German synagogue attack

A large concrete block shattered windows of a synagogue in Essen, Germany, in what is being investigated as an antisemitic attack. 

A suspect was caught on security footage at the weekend throwing the block at the synagogue after being seen wandering the area by members of the Jewish community.

The block landed in the office of the rabbi.

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Right-wing Dutch politician resigns following antisemitism scandal in party

The board of the youth branch of the Dutch right-wing Forum for Democracy expelled several of its members on 21st November, following several antisemitic posts and messages shared through groups in social networking platforms.

Across the messaging app WhatsApp and Instagram, young members had reportedly expressed sympathetic attitudes towards Nazi and fascist ideologies. A 23-year-old student, appointed as the coordinator of the Zuid-Holland branch of the Party, stated that: “Jews have international pedo networks and help women en masse into pornography”, and argued socialism would be the desirable solution. Within one group, multiple antisemitic songs, used originally as Nazi propaganda to incite hatred against Jews, were shared and praised.

Thierry Baudet, the leader of the group, has resigned as a result and claimed that assuming responsibility for the antisemitic content was not an immediate reason for stepping down from his position, despite calls for his removal prior to the internal disciplinary review.

Mr Baudet said, in a video published on his social media pages, that he was announcing his resignation and feared a “trial by the media” would ensue, with claims that Party members were willing to “throw people under the bus”. He has, however, urged all Party members responsible for the antisemitic materials and their enablers to leave the Party immediately.

The Party’s youth division is currently under investigation to establish how the messages were distributed and to identify all perpetrators.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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Albanian Prime Minister says antisemitism is threat to civilisation after the country adopts the International Definition of Antisemitism

Antisemitism is a threat to civilisation, according to Albania’s Prime Minister, who made the statement within days of his Government adopting the International Definition of Antisemitism.

Speaking at a forum against antisemitism organised in partnership with the Jewish Agency for Israel, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said: “We need to continue and fight any form of antisemitism, which is a threat to our own civilisation.”

The first such forum to be staged in the Balkans, and held online owing to the Coronavirus pandemic, it was attended by top diplomats, including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The event was held just days after the Muslim state’s Parliament voted unanimously to adopt the Definition.

During the forum, it was stated that Jews were protected in Albania during WWII, and that no Jews were handed over to the Nazis, despite occupation by Nazi Germany from 1943 to 1944.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.

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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.