News Digest — 9/29/21
Herzog To Visit Ukraine For 80th Anniversary Of Babi Yar Massacre
Israeli President Isaac Herzog will pay a three-day state visit to Ukraine starting next Tuesday, October 5, for the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Babi Yar massacre.
Herzog will be one of the speakers at the commemoration ceremony on October 6, which comes 30 years after the first such ceremony was permitted.
The memorial ceremony next week will take place at the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center in Kiev, which is currently under construction, under the chairmanship of former Israeli government minister and former chairman of the Jewish Agency Natan Sharansky, who was born in Ukraine. There are also other Jewish monuments on the site.
Herzog’s delegation will include several members of Knesset, the most prominent of whom will be Minister for Jerusalem Affairs and Minister for Housing and Construction MK Ze’ev Elkin, who was also born in Ukraine and is currently the government liaison to Kiev.
Also attending the Babi Yar commemoration ceremony will be Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and German President Frank Walter Steinmeier, who last year attended events in Israel, Poland and Germany to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
In the course of his visit, Herzog will meet privately with Zelensky, address the Ukrainian Parliament, and meet with representatives of the Jewish community.
Herzog, whose father was an officer in the British Army and among the liberators of Bergen-Belsen, said in relation to his participation in the 80th anniversary commemoration of the Babi Yar massacre, “it is imperative to keep on speaking about this horrific event and learn its lessons. The Babi Yar Holocaust Memorail Center is an important site for the commemoration of this painful memory and for the declaration that we must continue saying together: Never again. The only way to build a present and future in which atrocities and crimes against humanity can find no foothold, is to study the past, including the Holocaust and the persecution of the Jewish people in the spirit of the commandment ‘And you shall tell your sons and daughters.’”
Herzog commended Zelensky for his commitment to fighting against anti-Semitism in Ukraine and elsewhere.
Babi Yar was a ravine in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev and the site of a two-day massacre of Jews on September 29-30, 1941, carried out by Nazi Germany forces in which 33,771 were killed.
Jews And Arabs Gather In Annual Sukkat Shalom In Judea
Over 100 Arabs and Jews gathered Monday (27th) at the home of Efrat Mayor Oded Revivi to put religious coexistence on display on the final day of the Jewish festival of Sukkot.
The gathering was attended by former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, head of the Civil Administration Division at the Office of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, diplomats from neighboring nations, as well as dozens of local Arab leaders.
Many of the Arabs in attendance preferred not to be photographed or identified in the press. Publication of attendees in prior years’ gatherings led to interrogation and administrative detention by the Palestinian Authority.
However, the Arab leaders in attendance related stories of close friendships and cooperation with their Jewish neighbors.
“Not everybody understands the complexity of living in Judea and Samaria,” said Revivi. “Here Jews and Arabs live together and work together, which provides the very foundations needed for peace.”
“The area serves as a model for coexistence,” Revivi said.
Shai, the highest ranking Israeli official to attend, stated that the event highlights the reality that “Arabs and Jews must live together – there is no alternative.”
Shai noted that “We have been living together for generations and we will live together for many years to come. The Sukkah of Peace here in Efrat helps us to create a reality of peace.”
Friedman, who played a critical role in the establishment of the now-one-year-old Abraham Accords between Israel, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, explained why the accords were named after the Jewish prophet Abraham, who is also heralded as a prophet in the Islamic faith.
“We chose the name of Abraham for the Abraham Accords because it says that “he will be the father of many nations,” Friedman said.
He added that not only is it good to coexist but that “it is even a mitzvah for Jews and Arabs to be together. It is obligatory.”
During the event, Friedman was presented with an ancient map of Israel found in Jordan.
(jns.org)
EU To Condition UNRWA Funds On Removing Incitement From PA Textbooks
The European Union Parliament said it will condition the funds received by the UN Palestinian refugees’ agency on removal of incitement against Israel from Palestinian textbooks.
The European Parliament’s Budget-panel approved on Tuesday (28th) an amendment to withhold 20 million Euros in aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinians in the Near East if immediate changes are not made to the curriculum taught in its schools, which includes anti-Israel rhetoric and incitement to violence.
“The reserve of Euro 20 million will be released by the next academic school year if substantive positive changes are made in the Palestinian Authority curriculum that promote coexistence and tolerance with Jewish-Israeli peace education …” the approved amendment 4083 said.
“Should there be no change, appropriations in reserve shall be used for funding Palestinian NGOs that have a proven track-record of promoting educational initiatives in school settings for children designed to foster tolerance, coexistence and respect towards the Jewish-Israeli ‘other,’” the amendment added.
“Hate speech, anti-Semitism and incitement to violence in Palestinian Authority and UNRWA textbooks have still not been removed. The European Parliament decisions insist that EU-funded salaries of education’s civil servants who draft Palestinian textbooks must be made conditional on material reflecting values of peace, tolerance and coexistence,” the justification for the amendment noted.
In April, the European Parliament for the first time in its history passed a resolution condemning the UNRWA for inciting hatred in its curricula and demanding that the content be “removed immediately.”
Brussels is the PA’s largest single donor – paying the salaries of its civil servants, including those who design PA curricula – and sending over $157 million in aid to UNRWA in 2021.
Israel ‘Happy’ To Take Part In Expo 2020 Dubai Fair
Israel is gearing up to take part in ‘Expo 2020 Dubai’ when the world fair opens Friday, October 1, a spokesman said, a year after the UAE and the Jewish state normalized ties.
“We’re very happy to be here,” Menachem Gantz told AFP, the spokesman of Israel’s Pavilion at the 6-month world fair.
“This is the first time the expo is in the Middle East, and the first time Israel is participating in an event on such a large scale and importance – and in an Arab country.”
On September 15th the United Arab Emirates marked one year since normalizing ties with Israel, a move that leaders hope will reap a trillion dollars in trade and business.
Previously, Egypt and Jordan were the only Arab states to have peace agreements under which they recognize Israel. Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has called the Gulf States peace deal with Israel a “betrayal” of the Palestinian cause.
So far, the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan have normalized ties with Israel.
The Israeli Pavilion, which includes a large illuminated sign saying “Towards Tomorrow,” using both Arabic and Hebrew – will be open to all.
Inside the pavilion, pathways run between sand dunes made of a thin layer of concrete and sand-colored rubber.
“Our pavilion…is made of things that integrate us, that show how similar we are,” Gantz said.
“The ‘sand’ we’re standing on symbolizes the dunes, and the topography of both Israel and the Emirates, which is very similar.”
The UAE and Israel are seeking to emphasize the economic advantages offered by normalization.
The global expo, which Dubai hopes will attract visitors and boost the economy, is set to open its doors to the public on October 1 after a one-year delay due to the coronavirus.
(ynetnews.com; afp.com)
Historic British Resort Town Hit With Anti-Semitic Graffiti
A British town has been hit with a barrage of anti-Semitic graffiti, with statues and a historic castle defaced with Nazi symbols and offensive images.
Residents of Knaresborough, a resort town located in North Yorkshire, were aghast when it was discovered that over the weekend statues of former town residents were covered with graffiti and the town’s historic castle was similarly vandalized, Yorkshire Live reported.
The castle dates back to 1100 and was in use until 1648. Reportedly, the vandal climbed into the castle’s King Chambers, which are right next to the police station, in order to spray paint Nazi symbols on the castle walls.
The two statues were defaced with red and white graffiti from top to bottom, completely covering the faces.
The UK has seen a worrying increase in anti-Semitic and Nazi vandalism in the last year.
Earlier in the September, a man stood trial for vandalizing 17 bus stops in Jewish areas of North West London with anti-Semitic graffiti that claimed Jewish people were “grey aliens,” reported the Mirror.
In August, a Brentwood salon was covered with dozens of swastikas and other racist graffiti.
Also in August, a vandal was caught on surveillance video, drawing Nazi symbols along a Manchester road, reported the Manchester Evening News.
A few days earlier, a large swastika and racist graffiti were discovered on a bridge in northern England.
In July, a man with a record of previous anti-Semitic discrimination pleaded guilty in court to defacing a war memorial in a coastal town in North Wales with Nazi and anti-Semitic messages.
(isnn.com)
