First candle of Chanukah- #LightingEurope

Serbia has adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism, the latest Balkan country to do so following Romania, Bulgaria and North Macedonia.
European Jewish Association Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin today welcomed the move:
“Serbs, along with Jews, suffered the worst excesses of Nazism, as Hitler blamed both for the first world war. We welcome Serbia to the fold of countries that understand the danger of resurgent antisemitism across the continent and are rigorously committed to stamping it out and clearly stating what it is, without equivocation.
We continue to urge other countries who have not signed up in full, to do so. The coronavirus will, thank goodness, pass and eventually be eradicated. We still have much work to do to eliminate the virus of antisemitism. “

Our story about Universiteit Gent’s repugnant Sign language dictionary for Jew went viral. From El Pais in Spain, the Guardian in UK, From France to Belgium, the US to Israel, the image of a woman signing a hook-nose to denote Jew is as shocking to the media as it was to us and the family who dioscovered. We are still awaiting a formal explanation from the Rector of the University. They have already captioned them as derogatory but this is not enough. No deaf person should be signing Jew in this way. It is offensive. Full stop. We will keep you updated.
The guargian

EJA board member chief rabbi Jacobs, Shoah survivor Rabbi Vorst and EJA Director of public affairs Alex Benjamin met with fractie head of Dutch political party Christen Unie MP Segers and MP Bruins to discuss our Jewish red lines and to commend the party’s initiative to create a dedicated Dutch Parliament special envoy to combat antisemitism. We agreed to work together and lobby others to help get the proposal through the chamber. The MPs also heard moving testimony from Rabbi Vorst. As we explained to them: when a Holocaust survivor says they are worried about antisemitism in Holland, you know there’s something deeply wrong.

An exhibition today was placed in front of Place Luxembourg which exhibited a Hamas Tunnel where the victims of October 7th were held. This immersive installation, housed within a container, unveils a narrow tunnel leading to poignant before-and-after images of the hostages projected on the wall. This 3-minute experience provides a glimpse into the challenges faced by the hostages held captive for over 4 months.