Communication of the Conseil de l’Ordre regarding an Increase of Antisemitic Incidents

“Where Brussels has led, others must follow”, says EJA Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin, adds “thank goodness for 3 Parliaments in Belgium.”

(Brussels 17 June). In a closely contested vote (42 against, 38 for) the Brussels Parliament has just voted not to ban Kosher slaughter in the Capital Region.

The move represents a victory for Jews in the Belgian Capital and stands in contrast to both Flanders and Wallonia (Belgium’s other regions) where bans on Kosher slaughter are in place.

Welcoming the vote, Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the Chairman of the European Jewish Association that represents hundreds of communities across the Continent, and whose offices are headquartered in Brussels said in a statement:

“After a steady stream of bans across Europe that has left many communities bereft of local Kosher meat and having to shoulder the increased expenses of importing meat, we applaud this vote by Belgium’s Capital Parliament.

“The expense of course is of secondary concern to the overwhelming feeling from communities across the continent that their faith and traditions are constantly under threat by ill-though out , or malign legislation. 

“It is not said too often, but thank goodness for 3 parliaments in Belgium. There are few bastions left where Freedom of Religion is still considered a fundamental right. As a citizen of Brussels, I am proud that the capital is such a bastion. Where Brussels has led, others must now follow”.

“Nasrallah right now seems to have no reason to continue on the path he took after October 7. He is losing top commanders and cells and this creates fear and demoralizes his militiamen,” says reitered general Israel Ziv, one of Israel’s most influential military strategic and defense commentator.

“The responsibility for the failure of  October 7 falls as much on the intelligence as on the political leadership.” What happened was due to the fact that Israel did not realize, or perhaps did not want to realize, that Hamas was transforming from a terrorist group to a large-scale military organization. We saw pieces of it but we didn’t catch the whole picture.”

‘’In the October 7 attack, Hamas put into practice the doctrine of Qasem Soleimani, the general killed in 2020 by a U.S. raid. The pattern is that, surround Israel, force it to respond on multiple fronts, overpower it.’’

This is the analysis of retired IDF general Israel Ziv, one of Israel’s most influential military strategic and defense commentators. He spoke at a briefing for journalists organized by Europe Israel Press Association (EIPA) in Rome.

Ziv is an expert on military operations particularly in Gaza, where he played a key role in the Israeli disengagement in 2005, and in Lebanon by helping to formulate the strategic agreement between Israel and the United States.

Hamas is a piece on Iran’s chessboard, like Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in the Red Sea, and Shiite groups in Syria. Iran, he said, concurs in gaining positions and increasing its weight within the coalition with Russia and China.

“Nasrallah, for his part right now seems to have no reason to continue on the path he took after October 7. He is losing top commanders and cells and this creates fear and demoralizes his militiamen,” Ziv  added.

The military analyst outlined the personality of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by trying to explain why he attacked Israel specifically on October 7: “I know people in Khan Yunis (Sinwar’s hometown), there they describe him as a true radical, one who kills with his own hands those he considers his traitors. A fanatic of Islamic rules, absolutely anti-Semitic,” Ziv said.

“For the October 7 assault he was already preparing when he was detained in an Israeli prison, sentenced to several life sentences. When he was released, along with 1,000 other Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011, Sinwar quickly cornered Ismail Haniyeh, who was sent to be a political leader in Qatar. He took all the power and put himself next to Mohammed Deif, whom he knew well. Most likely now Sinwar is still in some tunnel in Khan Yunis, where he travels with his family. Although we cannot be 100 percent sure. Palestinian civilians don’t think about it: captured militiamen were asked why they don’t have the tunnels used as shelters. They answered that the tunnels are only for fighters, not for civilians.”

“The agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia certainly affected the choice to attack,” he said. “Israel’s biggest mistake? Not understanding that Sinwar created an army, Hamas is a military organization, an extensive underground structure that is difficult to attack, it has the capacity to produce weapons. It has been underestimated.”

“The only possible solution is for Gaza to be independent, to develop its economy, to be dependent on no one, for the Palestinian population to prosper, to have a future. Without Unrwa, which in its school books teaches children to hate Jews and kill them,” Ziv added.

Who is Israel Ziv ?

Ziv is an expert on military operations particularly in Gaza, where he played a key role in the Israeli disengagement in 2005, and in Lebanon by helping to formulate the strategic agreement between Israel and the United States.

A retired general, upon learning of the October 7  incursion and resulting significant civilian and military turmoil, Ziv, equipped with a nine-millimeter pistol, proceeded towards the conflict zone, organizing soldiers, supervising evacuations, and participating in combat. His actions, widely reported by Israeli media, subsequently transformed him into a notable figure representing individual initiative, particularly in the context of what some observers and Ziv himself viewed as a failure by the government and military to sufficiently safeguard civilians.

‘The responsibility for the failure of October 7 falls as much on the intelligence as on the political leadership’

A Jewish cemetery in Belgrade, Serbia was vandalized Wednesday night, when an axe, hammer and stones were thrown through the window of its chapel.
A spokesperson for the Jewish Community of Belgrade told The Algemeiner that the incident had caused serious material damage, noting that if the chapel had been occupied, it could have resulted in “severe physical injuries or even death.”
The spokesperson said that “this act reminds us of Kristallnacht,” the Nazi-led riots against the German Jewish community in 1938.
On Thursday, European Jewish Association Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin wrote to Serbia’s Minister of Internal Affairs, calling for a full investigation.

“It is clear that whoever was responsible has no respect for the dead, never mind the living,” Margolin said in a statement. “We extend our support to our Jewish brothers and sisters in Belgrade and Serbia as a whole, who must be reeling at this attack, and feeling vulnerable.”

“I have written to Serbian minister of Internal Affairs asking for a robust response to the attack, as well as a full throated condemnation, lest the antisemites that carried out this act believe that it is now open season on Jewish buildings in Serbia.”

The vandalism is the latest in a series of antisemitic incidents to hit the Belgrade Jewish community. The Jewish Community told The Algemeiner of repeated antisemitic harassment against a prominent Jewish epidemiologist, including graffiti that compared him to the infamous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, as well as demonstrations outside the epidemiologist’s home in which demonstrators wore yellow Stars of David.
Threats of a second Holocaust have also been received at the Community’s Facebook page, as well as Nazi symbols, antisemitic emails, and other threats.

Axe Thrown Through Window of Belgrade Jewish Cemetery Chapel

The European Jewish Association is proud and delighted to welcome another organisation to our growing roster of partners and communities.
We have just concluded and signed a memorandum of understanding with The Jewish Community of “The Lemnaria” Synagogue of Jewish Community of Moldova(Kishinev).
We are sure that this cooperation will bring with it beautiful and important accomplishments. We look forward to working for the betterment of Moldova and European Jewry together.