Google Map Belgium exposes Elders of Ziyon cell based in Brussels synagogue

An antisemitc comment has been on Google Maps Belgium since 15 Avril 2010 describing the Great Synagogue of Brussels, which is also the Great Synagogue of Europe‎, thus (translation from the Flemish) :

"All political, economic and financial decisions in Belgium are taken here. For a decision to be taken, the Belgian Parliament (Wetstraat) has to seek prior approval from the Learned Elders of Ziyon cell based at the Great Synagogue of Brussels (Regentschapsstraat)." 

"hoofdsynagoge Brussel Hier worden alle beslissingen genomen op politiek, economisch en financieel vlak voor België. Vooraleer een beslissing genomen wordt in de Wetstraat, wordt hier in de Regentschapsstraat toestemming gevraagd aan de Wijzen van Zion."

Link: http://maps.google.be/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode&q=Rue+de+la+R%C3%A9gence+32+1000+City+of+Brussels+&aq&sll=50.838685%2C4.355135&sspn=0.007182%2C0.01929&num=10&ie=UTF8&hq&hnear=Rue+de+la+R%C3%A9gence+32%2C+1000+Bruxelles&ll=50.83882%2C4.35536&spn=0.000898%2C0.002411&z=19
then click on the Synagogue.

Needless to say, no such remarks feature either on the Cathedral or on the Great Mosque Brussels maps.

100 years ago Charles Maurras wrote: when all is hopeless try anti-Semitism

On 28 March 1911, Charles Maurras, an intellectual who became a member of the Académie Française in 1938, wrote in L’action française :


"Anti-Semitism is providential. When all looks either impossible, or awfully difficult, it will sort out, smooth over and simplify everything."

H/T N.L.

Belgian newspaper: 99% of Jews stink according to a prostitute

Last weekend, Gazet van Antwerpen, a local Antwerp newspaper, carried an article about prostitution in the city.  The newspaper quotes a prostitute's views on her clients according to nationality and ethnic group. What caracterises her Jewish clientele is lack of hygiene and hypocrisy:

"99% of Jews  - even those with side curls - are dirty and stink.  They always come on Sunday because shabbat is sacred for them.  They do not want to be seen and often hide under an umbrella.  Even when the sun is shining ..."

"99% van de joden - ja, zelfs die met pijpenkrullen - zijn onhygiënisch en stinken. Ze komen altijd op zondag want de sabbat (zaterdag, red.) is heilig. Ze willen niet opvallen en verbergen zich vaak onder een paraplu. Ook als de zon schijnt...".

Arab democracy: Dieudonné goes to Tunisia and calls Zionism a cancer that pollutes the world

French comedian Dieudonné gave a performance in newly democratic Tunisia on 16 March. (See list of court convictions).  Dieudonné is an iconic figure in France.

The CRIF published an article by Jean Corcos "Dieudonné in Tunis : a new anti-Semitic delirium and disturbing developments in Tunisia".

His visit was widely covered and he was interviewed by newspapers and a TV channel, MosaïqueFM.net.  Jean Corcos saw the video and comments (excerpts):

"From the outset, the pseudo comic is on familiar ground harping on his all consuming obsession: "My show is critical of the Zionists." If he talks about his visits to Iran it is to say that the Iranian people "are courageous" and that "they always have the United States and Israel on their backs" ...  opponents killed by the regime in Tehran will think it's tasteless humor. Also note his crass ignorance, which makes him put the date of the Islamic revolution at 1975, or when he tells later that "Ben Ali has held for 30 years".  In fact he took power in 1987!

 Dieudonné immediately "appropriated" the Tunisian revolution by stating that it will be an example to the world. A world, obviously, that must be rid of "Zionism" and soon after with accents reminiscent of nazism he called his spooky ennemy a "cancer" that "pollutes the atmosphere of France and of the World".

"Zionism is money, money for the sake of money, it's Wall Street", he said.  Dieudonné also had a go at Dominique Strauss-Kahn [who is Jewish and expected to be the Socialist party candidate at the French presidential elections in 2012] is the real racist "who unlike Jean-Marie Le Pen [former leader of the far right party Front National] - cited by the journalists - "is the real racist." DSK was called the "candidate of Israel" and "the candidate of Wall Street" ... Can it be any clearer?

But the feeling of uneasiness is perhaps even stronger when one listens to the journalists.  [...] What's shocking is the fact that for the Tunisians who interviewed Dieudonné it is obvious that Israelis are racists of the worst kind. And that they are "a population that feels superior to all others, and who wants to dominate the world" ...

Belgian-Arab artist: electric chair for children with Hebrew inscription

Interestingly, Belgian Arab artist Jamila Al Badaoui claimed that her "electric chair for children" had been at various exhibitions in Brussels without a single complaint being raised. Also interesting to note, none of the inscriptions is in any of the three Belgian official languages: Flemish, French and German.

Source: European Voice (Shock and withdraw)

Artwork is on display, then it's gone.  From the European Commission's department of self-inflicted wounds: on Tuesday (8 March), to celebrate International Women's Day, the Commission hosted an exhibition of work by Arab women artists.

One work, “Electric chair for children”, by the Brussels artist Jamila Al Badaoui, was not on show for long. The work bears a sign saying “Caution: buried electric cable below”, in English, Arabic and Hebrew. The artist said the piece was intended as a universal statement about children's rights and in no way an attack on Israel. But it was withdrawn a mere two hours after going on display.

The Commission's Development and Co-operation department, which is hosting the exhibition at its offices on rue de la Loi until 1 April, said the decision to withdraw the piece was taken by the organisers, the Arab Women's Solidarity Association.

H/T: Esther

Free Dershowitz lectures rejected by Norwegian PM, FM and elite Universities

Idag brings us a fascinating story on The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem and their unique offer to bring international Law expert and top Harvard Law School lecturer Alan Dershowitz to give free lectures, breakfast conferences to Norwegian leading politicians and elite institutions.

The generous offer was directed to our Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, as well as the Universities of Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim.

To their great dismay (and let me just add that to my great dismay too) the offer was turned down.

According to Dag Øyvind Juliussen at the ICEJ, this is astonishing and can only be logically explained with an anti-Israel policy.  He also says:

"We are saddened that our top politicians who have engaged so strongly with the ME conflict have turned down this offer. We think that they would have benefitted from a meeting with Prof. Dershowitz.

We thought that a professor from Harvard Law School would be of interest for the universities in Oslo, Trondheim and Bergen and offered them a lecture with Dershowitz on Israel and International Law. None of them wanted the guest lecture by Alan Dershowitz. The Dean of the University of Bergen did welcome Dershowitz on condition that he did not talk about the ME conflict."

So, we have NTNU turning down a lecture by one the worlds greatest law specialist on the heels of their infamous and intellectually insulting ME lectures series which consisted mainly of academic insignificants, while the University of Oslo cannot defend the basic human rights of a Jewish student but still wants to portray itself as an institution with the highest aspirations in the area of international Law (apparently the academic aspirations stop at Masters level...), whereas Bergen only welcomes him if he stays off the specific topic offered: Israel and International Law. But apparently they are happy to be lauded by the Boycott Israel movement who has thanked the institution for its willingness to discuss an academic boycott.

Read the full story on the Norway, Israel and the Jews blog

Is renowned Spanish writer Antonio Gala an anti-Semite?

"Without putting a stop to avarice and false accounts, the Jewish people will succumb once more. … Wouldn’t this people do right to ask itself why it always goes through the same thing? Or is it maybe the rest of the world that is mistaken?" (Antonio Gala)

According to the 2008 Pew Global Attitudes Project, Spain has the highest level of anti-Semitism in Europe, with more Spaniards holding negative than positive views of Jews.  It is therefore not surprising that there is not a word about Gala's antisemitis views on his Wikipedia biography in Spanish, though there is a mention that in 1981 he was appointed Chairman of the Hispanic-Arab Friendship Association.

Source : Spain, Israel and the Jews (Is Antonio Gala an anti-Semite?)

Antonio Gala is surely one of the most renowned Spanish writers, with works such as Petra regalada, Samarkanda or La pasión turca, among many others.

But he doesn't only write novels, poems or scripts, but also opinion articles to be published by Spanish daily El Mundo. And, as Libertad Digital reported on Wednesday, March 16, 2011, one of his last ideas consisted in using the human and national tragedy Japan is currently living to target Israel.

Gala explained in his article about what he calls the "human fleas" that "lessons such as the earthquake and the tsunami in Japan should teach them other kinds of behaviour: unity in the face of helplessness, generosity, (...). But they don't learn." And then he writes about Israel in this manner: "So we see Israel there, the most racist country, going back to Gaza after the fright."

This is not the first time he targets Israel or even the Jews. In an article published on February 5, 2009 by El Mundo, he explained that "the Jewish people will succumb again. Like it happened many times: pogroms, voluntary or unvoluntary ghettos, extermination, persecutions, expulsions,... From Egypt to Sepharad, from Canaan to Zion: all of them promised lands. Shouldn't they ask themselves why does always happen the same to them? Or is the rest of the world wrong?"

Spanish journalist David Gistau answered Gala through an article published on February 8, 2009 by El Mundo. He wrote that Gala's "reasoning makes Hitler an executor arm of a hate morally justified by a majority", as well as "we should ask Gala whether he would apply the same logic to (...) understand other persecutions (...). For example, those which were suffered by homosexuals."

Did Gala react to Gistau's argument by apologizing to the Jews? No, he didn't. On March 5, 2009, another article written by Gala was published by El Mundo. The Spanish writer explained about the Jews that: "Always the same: or persecuted or persecutors. Or both things at the same time."

I'll not insult anybody's intelligence by explicitly answering the question which serves as the title of this article.

____________
AJC Rebukes Spanish Paper for Anti-Semitic Column

February 12 2009 – New York – AJC today rebuked Spanish newspaper El Mundo for publishing an openly anti-Semitic column, and expressed concern over the increasing level of anti-Semitism in Spain.

"Remarkable" outbreak of anti-semitism in Germany and in Europe

“The new anti-Semitism is spread not just by neo-Nazis but also by mainstream left-wing members of parliament, left-wing activists, extremist Muslims and the European elites likewise.” ( Dr. Clemens Heni)

Asked whether “Jews try to take advantage of having been victims during the Nazi era.”  Almost half the Germans questioned responded in the affirmative; the country’s 48.9% result was the highest among the Western European countries. The Netherlands provided the lowest percentage, with 17.2% affirming that Jews were trying to exploit the Nazi era. The number for Poland was 72.2%, and Hungary reached 68.1%. France reached 32.3%, England 21.8%, Portugal 52.2% [there are less than 1.000 Jews left in Portugal] and Italy 40.2%.

See also : An amazing 77% of Germans are hostile to Israel 

Source: JPost ('47% of Germans think Israel exterminating Palestinians', by Benjamin Weinthal)

Study shows a strong presence of “anti-Semitism that is linked with Israel and is hidden behind criticism of Israel" in Europe.

BERLIN – A think-tank affiliated with Germany’s Social Democratic Party issued a new report last week that revealed high levels of anti-Semitism in Germany, Poland and Hungary, as well as varying manifestations of racism, homophobia and prejudice in eight European countries.

Dr. Beate Küpper, a researcher from the University of Bielefeld who co-authored the Friedrich Ebert Foundation’s study along with her colleagues Andreas Zick and Andreas Hoevermann, told The Jerusalem Post on Monday that the study showed a strong presence of “anti-Semitism that is linked with Israel and is hidden behind criticism of Israel, and is not neutral.”  She termed the outbreak of Jew-hatred in Germany “remarkable” because there were widespread Holocaust remembrance and education events in Germany.

The study – “Intolerance, Prejudice, Discrimination: A European Report” – questioned roughly 1,000 people in each of the selected EU countries.  The investigation was limited to Great Britain, Holland, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Poland and France due to financial restrictions and requisite expertise in each country to track anti-democratic attitudes, according to Küpper.

Asked to respond to the statement that “Israel is conducting a war of extermination against the Palestinians,” 47.7 percent of the study’s participants in Germany expressed agreement – the highest number in Western Europe.  The statement is a typical question used to probe attitudes about equating Israel with the Nazi campaign to exterminate European Jewry.  The US State Department defines the comparison as an expression of modern anti- Semitism, as does the European Union.

Given Poland’s lukewarm foreign policy toward Israel, the finding that 63.3% of the Poles questioned agree that Israel is seeking to obliterate Palestinians may be deeply alarming to some.

The statement “Considering Israel’s policy, I can understand why people do not like Jews” met with 35.6% affirmation in Germany, while 35.9% of British respondents were in agreement. In the Netherlands, 41.1% favored the assertion, as did 55.2% in Poland, 45.6% in Hungary and 48.8% in Portugal. France declined to participate.

No European condemnation of murder of family in Itamar

A Jewish group criticized the lack of a European Union condemnation of the murder of the Fogel family in Itamar.

"It is incredible that the EU who is so quick to condemn the building of housing units has little to say on the cold-blooded murder of a whole family, including an infant", Moshe Kantor, President of the European Jewish Congress. (EJP)

An amazing 77% of Germans are hostile to Israel

A poll by the BBC shows that the population of Western Europe views Israel with great hostility and that the most averse country to Israel is Germany.  This is appalling considering that Germany was responsible for the industrial extermination of 6 million Jews, including 1.5 million children.

The BBC report (Israel and Iran Share Most Negative Ratings in Global Poll) indicates "Large majorities also have negative views [of Israel] in Europe, including Germany (77%), Greece (68%) and France (66%)". Interestingly, Turks and Indonesians have a slightly better opinion of Israel than Germans.  This is what the poll reveals about opinions in Western Europe :

- Germany : 77% negative views - 10% positive

- Greece : 68% negative views - 11% positive

- France : 66% negative views - 12% positive

- Great-Britain: 65% negative views - 17% positive

- Portugal: 60% negative views - 12% positive (there are less than 1 000 Jews in Portugal!)

- Italy : 58% negative views - 18% positive


Interestingly, in a recent op-ed in Le Monde, German writer Peter Schneider complained that when dealing with the Israel-Palestine conflit"Germany is still petrified by the notion of guilt" ...  What guilt means to intellectuals like Schneider remains to be determined.

Germany: long-standing anti-Semitic, anti-Israel exhibit in Cologne city centre

Prof. Christian Tomuschat, German Israel-basher heads GOLDSTONE II