Jerusalem no longer capital of Israel in Czech schools
A school atlas that labels Jerusalem as the capital of Israel will no longer be used in Czech schools, following a complaint by the Palestinian ambassador in Prague to the Czech Education Ministry.
The atlas, first published by the Czech firm Shocart in 2004, was approved for use in Czech schools in 2011. After the envoy’s complaint, the ministry said it would demand the publisher alter the labeling, according to a Czech newspaper.
“I have been to Israel several times. It is a sovereign country, and I think it is up to them to decide what their capital is. I believe we should respect that,” said Karel Krsak, CEO of the publishing firm. However, Krsak still plans to make the requested change. Like nearly all member states of the United Nations, the Czech Republic does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital pending a comprehensive peace agreement, and maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv. — jta
Belgian airline to serve halva made on West Bank
Belgium’s biggest airline said it would serve a West Bank-produced halva snack after pulling the sesame treat from its flights following complaints by a group that supports the boycott movement against Israel.
While Brussels Airlines said last week it did not order the halva and the snack was served on its flight by mistake, the airline called the food manufacturer Achva “one of our trustful suppliers” in a statement to the Israeli Foreign Ministry quoted by the Times of Israel.
Achva is located in the Barkan Industrial Park near the city of Ariel in the northern West Bank.
Last week, Brussels Airlines stopped serving its passengers the halva snack following complaints by the Palestine Solidarity Movement, a proponent of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. — jta
E.U. allocates $1.5M to Lodz train station museum
The European Union allocated $1.5 million for the expansion of the museum at the Radegast train station in Lodz, from which Jews were shipped to death camps during the Holocaust.
The money will be used to modernize the building and construct a multimedia model of the Lodz Ghetto.
During the Holocaust, the Nazis sent Jews from the ghetto to death camps from the Radegast station. After the war the station fell into disrepair and appeared to be forgotten. A museum was opened there 10 years ago.
The multimedia model of the Lodz Ghetto, or Litzmannstadt Ghetto, as it was known in German, will be made on a scale of 1:1400 and will show the ghetto as it appeared in May 1944.
The work at the station is expected to be completed in 2019. — jta