Volume 4 No 1 - Journal for the Study of Antisemitism

24 JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM [ VOL. 4:9
May it [Israel] be destroyed. May it be colonized. May it be wiped off
the map. May a wall fall on it. May it disappear from the universe. God,
please have it banished.
—Egypt’s Amr El Masry’s hit song “I Love Israel”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC5czUoiK08
London, June 12: The Tories’ organizational grouping in Europe is facing an
embarrassing split after a controversial Polish priest who runs a radio station that
broadcasts antisemitic views was invited to the European parliament by one of its
MEPs. Father Tadeusz Rydzyk, whose Radio Maryja has been condemned by Jewish
organizations and the Vatican for its extreme views, was invited last week to
Brussels by a Polish MEP from the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR),
the anti-federalist group. The invitation has angered some Tory MEPs, including
one who has written to Polish colleagues demanding that members of the group
never again invite someone with antisemitic views to Brussels. The split is an
embarrassment for the Tories because the ECR, which was formed two years ago,
is closely associated with David Cameron. It comes as Poland’s attitude toward
racism is being scrutinized during the Euro 2012 Football Championship, which the
country is co-hosting with Ukraine.
The Hague, June 18: Inadequate registration of antisemitic crimes by European
Union countries makes it impossible to accurately assess its prevalence, the EU’s
Agency for Fundamental Rights said. The Vienna-based EU made the claim in a
working paper titled “Anti-Semitism—Summary Overview of the Situation in the
European Union 2001-2011.” The 55-page report states that “A small minority of
member states operate official data collection mechanisms robust enough to provide
a picture of the situation,” listing France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden,
the United Kingdom, and, “to a lesser extent,” Belgium. The report notes that Hungary,
Latvia, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, and Cyprus do not collect data on antisemitism
specifically. Data from Estonia, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and
Slovenia were “not available.” Denmark and Lithuania can offer “little” and
“scarce” information, respectively, on the phenomenon. “No clear-cut conclusions
can be drawn on the situation of anti-Semitism in the EU on the basis of the data
that are currently available,” the report states. Poland, according to official data,
reported 25 antisemitic cases. Greece reported three cases and Ireland two cases.
France’s government watchdog registered 389 cases in 2011, 466 incidents in 2010,
and 815 instances in 2009. The Community Security Trust of Britain’s Jewish community
counted 585 antisemitic incidents in 2011. Germany’s “political crimes”
police unit recorded 1,188 antisemitic incidents in 2011 and 1,192 cases in 2010.
Buenos Aires, June 20: Jewish soldiers will be recognized for their service during
the Falklands War, and the antisemitism they suffered will be acknowledged.
DAIA, the Jewish political umbrella in Argentina, will host the ceremony for the
soldiers who fought in the war 30 years ago. “I was insulted as a Jew,” said Silvio
Katz, an Argentina army veteran. “Our superiors told the other soldiers that the
Jewish soldiers would betray them in combat. I was tortured. I was forced to put
my hands, legs, and sometimes my head in cold water in the cold climate of the
islands. They told me that this punishment was because I was a Jew.”