More blatant lies about Israel on French public TV

After posting this earlier today, French Jews protest against “violently anti-Israel’ public TV documentary, another 'spectacular' French media Israel-bashing exercise has come to light.  

Benjamin Barthe is one of the several Israel-bashing journalists at the Monde. Interestingly, Bernard-Henri Lévy sits at the board of directors of Le Monde... and is held to be by French standards a pro-Israel intellectual.  Other prominent French Jews are also associated with Le Monde.

The latest Israel-bashing exercise by Barthe did not go unnoticed.  Yaron Gamburg, the spokesperson for the Israel embassy in France was outraged and issued a statement:

"Mr Barthe, one of  the journalists who interviewed today the number two of the embassy Sammy Ravel,  for TV5 Monde [the equivalent of BBC World], claimed that there is no mention of the Palestinian territories on the maps issued by the Israel Tourism Ministry. Frankly, who does he think he is kidding?"

Well you can see for yourself (link):

More here in French

Norman Finkelstein to testify at 'trial' of French Jewish philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy

Context: A Bertrand Russell 'tribunal' to try philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy for warmongering, unbridled imperialism and Zionism etc., organised by the association the Natives of the Republic (les Indigènes de la République). 

It now turns out that Norman Finkelstein will testify live by video conference from New York at the "trial" to be held this evening in Paris ...  He will be a shining star among a bunch of nonentities.

The preposterous "charges" against Bernard-Henri Lévy are :

- Advocacy of unbridled imperialism and Zionism
- Intellectual dishonesty, as a characteristic of the errors of philosophy, the accumulation of capital and power
- False accusation of an imaginary crime against Iran
- Warmongering and advocating humanitarian imperialism
- Aiding in the creation and promotion of SOS Racisme with a view to silencing autonomous movements of immigration
- Dissemination of false news likely to sow discord between Christian and Muslim religious communities.

A Bertrand Russell 'tribunal' to try philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy for warmongering, unbridled imperialism and Zionism etc.

The kangaroo court was created at the initiative an anti-Zionist political party "Les Indigènes de la République" to judge French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy. The "charges" against the philosopher are as follows:

- Advocacy of unbridled imperialism and Zionism
- Intellectual dishonesty, as a characteristic of the errors of philosophy, the accumulation of capital and power
- False accusation of an imaginary crime against Iran
- Warmongering and advocating humanitarian imperialism
- Aiding in the creation and promotion of SOS Racisme with a view to silencing autonomous movements of immigration
- Dissemination of false news likely to sow discord between Christian and Muslim religious communities.

The trial is due to take place in Paris on 28 January. 

This initiative is a pure product of what is happening in Europe.  Among the witnesses one finds British/Pakistani historian Tarik Ali and a Belgian teacher of the prestigious European School, Pierre Piccinin.  Another much respected Belgian, Pierre Galand [1]created a kangaroo court to try Israel ... using Bertrand Russell's name too - the Belgian Russell Tribunal on Palestine.

More in French here

[1] "Pierre Galand (Belgium) Using Political NGOs to Promote Demonization & Anti-Semitism in the UN & EU"

Ilan Halimi murder - Leniency For Barbarians

The retrial of 14 members of the Gang of Barbarians started on 25 October 2010.

Below an article by Véronique Chemla, published on FrontPage Magazine (July 17, 2009)

On July 13, 2009, French Minister of Justice Michèle Alliot-Marie asked the Parquet (a panel of magistrates under her authority, authorized to request penal sanctions in defence of the general welfare) to appeal 14 of the 25 sentences pronounced on July 10 against members of the Gang of Barbarian on trial for the anti-Semitic murder of Ilan Halimi. Those 14 sentences are lighter than the sanctions recommended by the Avocat general [roughly equivalent to the state’s attorney or public prosecutor].
On July 17, the Parquet announced it had appealed sentences for four more Gang members. Maître Francois-Pascal Gery, counsel for Gang ringleader Youssouf Fofana, the convicted killer of Ilan Halimi, said that his client was appealing his life sentence.

Last week, fearing light sentences, several French Jewish organisations called for a gathering before the Justice Ministry. After the verdict was announced, they asked the Minister to appeal. According to the French legal system, only the Parquet and the defendants can appeal penal sanctions. Plaintiffs are only allowed to appeal for civil damages.

On July 13, at 7 pm, several hundred people, most of them Jewish, gathered peacefully on a side street leading to Place Vendôme, where they were kept at a distance from the Ministry. They thanked the Minister for her decision and called for “Justice for Ilan.” Then a delegation composed of Jewish community leaders and Patrick Lozès President of CRAN (umbrella group of Black organizations) met with one advisor of the Minister of Justice. They emphasized the importance of holding the appeals trial in open court, with access to the media and the public, so that it would serve its pedagogical purpose.

The trial held this spring covered several attempted kidnappings in addition to Ilan Halimi’s murder. They all had the same modus operandi.

In December 2005, Gang of Barbarians chief Youssouf Fofana asked Alexandra S. to lure Michael Douieb, a Jewish music producer. On January 5, 2006 she met Mr Douieb and asked him to drive her “home” to a building in the Parisian banlieue of Arcueil, where Jean-Christophe S and Youssouf Fofana were waiting for him. They beat Douieb with iron bars while Youssouf Fofana shouted:

‘Dirty Jew, croak, you filthy kike! Neighbours, who heard Douieb shouting, reacted and his assailants fled.

Ilan Halimi rests in peace in Israel.

French support group organizes 'Running for Gilad Shalit’ near Paris

Has any of the French NGOs which operate in Gaza taken this opportunity to express support for this initiave ? It would have been a good opportunity to publicly put pressure on the Hamas to give them access (after 888 days in captivity) to 22-year old Gilad Shalit.

"A recently formed French support group calling for the release of Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier detained by Hamas in Gaza since June 2006, [organized] on Sunday in Neuilly-sur-Seine, near Paris, its first action aimed at recalling the fate of the young man.

"We call on French citizens to mobilize and to run for Gilad next Sunday," the "Collectif Liberté pour Gilad", which was created at Shalit family’s initiative, said in a statement.

Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped by Palestinians during a cross-border raid on an Israeli army base near Gaza on June 25, 2006, has also French citizenship. "Running for Gilad" is co-organized with the Mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine, Jean-Christophe Fromantin.

Participants [wore] a white t-shirt in order to show their peaceful intent. The action is supported by several French personalities who will take part in the running, including singer Patrick Bruel, philosopher Bernard-Henry Lévy, writer Marek Halter, actors Dany Boon and Yvan Attal, and comic Gad Elmaleh. Film director Elie Chouraqui made a short film (http://www.guiladshalit.com/) titled "Je suis Gilad" (I am Gilad) which appeals for the release of the young man.

Last month, during a press conference in paris, Noam Shalit, Gilad's father, called on the French citizens to mobilize for his son "like you did for Ingrid Betancourt". "There is still a French hostage to save," he said. Betancourt is a French-Colombian former hostage who was freed in July by the Colombian army after being held in the jungle by the Marxist FARC guerrilla for more than six years."

Source: EJP - Photo: Erez Lichtfeld
- Hundreds rally to show support for Gilad Shalit (London)
- Ingrid Betancourt pays tribute to Gilad Shalit at the European Parliament

Portrait of George Rodenbach by Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer (1896)

Portrait of George Rodenbach, Belgian symbolist poet and novelist (1855-1898)
by Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer (1865-1953)
Musée d'Orsay, Paris