Bishop’s apology too weak, Vatican says
The Vatican has dismissed as insufficient Richard Williamson’s apology for his denial of the Holocaust. The British bishop’s apology for the furor his remarks caused “does not seem to respect the conditions” for readmission into the church as a clergyman because it does not apologize for the Holocaust denial itself, a Vatican spokesman said Feb. 27.
Pope Benedict XVI set off a firestorm last month when he removed an excommunication imposed in 1988 on Williamson. Vatican spokesmen later said the pope was unaware of Williamson’s Holocaust denial.
Williamson left Argentina last week after authorities there expelled him for violating the conditions of his work visa. He returned to his native Britain, where the London Times published an e-mail exchange between Williamson and David Irving, a Briton who has served time in Austria for his own Holocaust denial. Irving advised Williamson on legal strategies to avoid arrest upon his return.
Britain does not ban Holocaust denial, but under European Union agreements, it may extradite deniers to countries where they may face charges. — jta
British leader signs anti-Semitism act
British prime minister Gordon Brown became the first world leader to sign the London Declaration on combating anti-Semitism. The measure was adopted last week in the British capital by 125 legislators from more than 40 countries at a coalition meeting to combat anti-Semitism.
On signing the declaration, Brown said, “So many of the principles it enshrines are already things we are doing here in Britain, and while I’m proud of the bold action Britain has taken to combat anti-Semitism such as improved reporting, prosecutions for anti-Semitic Internet hate and the funding of Holocaust education in schools, there is no room for complacency.”
Brown called on other heads of government to sign the “historic agreement” and work together to “rid the world of this ancient virus.” — jta
French court acquits cartoonist of inciting racial hatred
A major figure in French satire, cartoonist Maurice Sinet, has been acquitted of spreading anti-Semitism. A French court in Lyon ruled Feb. 24 that the cartoonist known as “Siné” was innocent of “inciting racial hatred” in an article that said Jean Sarkozy, son of the French president, “would go far in life” for converting to Judaism and marring a Jewish heiress.
Siné was fired in July by the far left satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo when he would not apologize for writing what appeared to link Jean Sarkozy’s supposed thirst for power with Judaism. The International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism then pressed charges against the 80-year-old cartoonist.
Siné, who also has a reputation for vehemently anti-Israel cartoons, maintained he did not mean Judaism brought wealth and power, but that Jean Sarkozy’s “political opportunism” encompassed converting to a religion in order to marry up. Jean Sarkozy did marry Jewish heiress Jessica Sebaoun-Darty, but he has not converted to Judaism. — jta
Gadhafi blames Israel for crisis in Darfur
Libyan President Moammar Gadhafi, who is president of the African Union, said last week that “foreign forces,” including Israel, are to blame for the genocide in Darfur.
“We discovered that some of the main leaders of the Darfur rebels have opened offices in Tel Aviv and hold meetings with the military there to add fuel to the conflict fire,” the Libyan state news agency Jana quoted Gadhafi as saying, Ha’aretz reported.
“Why do we have to hold [Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir] or the Sudanese government responsible when the Darfur problem was caused by outside parties, and Tel Aviv, for example, is behind the Darfur crisis?” he said. — jta
Anti-Jewish acts ‘back’ in France
The head of France’s Jewish political umbrella group told members of the country’s government that “anti-Semitism is back.”
CRIF President Richard Prasquier spoke March 2 at the group’s annual dinner to ministers and bipartisan politicians about the issues facing French Jews.
Raising his voice, Prasquier defended “the right to be Zionists without being victims of anti-Semitism.” In January, 352 anti-Semitic acts were counted in France, compared to some 460 each for all of 2007 and 2008, he said.
Prasquier slammed political leaders in the Communist and Green parties for marching under “hate banners and death slogans” in virulent anti-Israel protests that provoked a spike in anti-Jewish attacks during Israel’s Gaza offensive.
In his speech, Prime Minister François Fillion noted that France would not attend Durban II, the United Nations’ anti-racism conference set for Geneva, Switzerland, “if necessary,” adding that “we will not accept that Israel be stigmatized” or that Jews be “blackened.” — jta