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  • The European Broadcasting Union’s decision cleared the last hurdle for the Jewish state to participate in May’s musical extravaganza.

The European Broadcasting Union’s decision cleared the last hurdle for the Jewish state to participate in May’s musical extravaganza.

EU Based

Israel will be allowed to compete in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest with the reworked entry “Hurricane,” organizers informed Jerusalem on Thursday.

After the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the annual musical extravaganza, threatened to disqualify two of Israel’s entries over perceived political messaging, the Kan broadcaster worked to modify the lyrics to ensure the country’s participation in May.

The last lines of “October Rain” described the condition of Israelis during the Oct. 7  attacks, in which some 1,200 people were slaughtered: “There’s’ no air left to breathe / No place, no me from day to day.”

In one of the verses, the Israeli contestant, Eden Golan, sang the word “flowers,” which is Israel Defense Forces slang for fallen soldiers, but which does not carry that connotation for European viewers.

Israel’s second choice song, “Dance Forever,” was an apparent reference to the massacre at the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, where Hamas terrorists murdered 364 people on Oct. 7.

Kan has said that the Jewish state’s third submission tells the story of a “young woman who is surviving a personal crisis.” The song, set to the tune of “October Rain,” will be presented to the public during a live TV broadcast on Sunday.

Last month, the EBU reaffirmed that Israel would be allowed to compete amid the war against Hamas in Gaza, rejecting parallels drawn by pro-Palestinian activists with Russia’s exclusion over its invasion of Ukraine.

“Comparisons between war and conflict are complex and difficult and, as an apolitical media organization, it is not our place to make them,” EBU Director-General Noel Curran told AFP.

A review by EBU’s governing bodies found “that the Israeli public broadcaster Kan met all the competition rules for this year and can participate, as it has for the past 50 years,” Curran noted.

The EBU head said his organization was “aware” of voices calling for the Jewish state to be excluded from this year’s competition.

“However, the Eurovision Song Contest is a non-political musical event and a competition between public service broadcasters that are members of EBU. It is not a competition between governments,” he said.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 is taking place in Malmö, Sweden, following the Scandinavian country’s victory at the 2023 song contest. Golan, 20, will represent the Jewish state in the second semifinal on May 9. The grand final will take place two days later.

Last year, Israeli pop star Noa Kirel finished in third place in the Eurovision final in Liverpool, behind Sweden and Finland.

Additional Articles

Belgium

European Jews face new threat in wake of COVID-related anti-Semitism

Top European rabbi tells Israel Hayom a special center to monitor real-time incidents via remote feeds could be established in order to tackle anti-Jewish attacks.

The recent terrorist attacks in Austria and France, as well as the spike in coronavirus cases in Europe, has created a fear among Jews in the continent that anti-Semitic conspiracy theories blaming Jews for the spread of the pandemic could become mainstream.
A recent study in Germany showed that one in three Germans has somewhat of a conspiratorial view of the world.
Felix Klein, who is the federal commissioner for Jewish life in Germany and the fight against anti-Semitism, told Israel Hayom that the recent protests against the COVID-19 regulations have become fertile ground for anti-Jewish sentiment.
“The current protests against corona-related restrictions serve as a rallying point for antisemites, Holocaust deniers, and believers in conspiracy myths. At “hygiene protests”, participants downplay the Holocaust by, for example, comparing the current requirement to wear a face mask with the obligation to wear a Star of David during the Nazi regime,” he told Israel Hayom. “Portraying themselves as rebels – as do for example the supporters of the new political party Widerstand2020 (Resistance2020) and the Reichsbürger movement – is typical of adherents to anti-Semitic beliefs: Presenting oneself as breaking taboos, as ‘finally’ bringing the truth to light, as showing at last who is pulling the strings behind the scenes – and, as has been done for thousands of years, pointing their fingers once again at Jews,” he added.
When asked about the danger posed by such conspiratorial views, he noted that there is a concern verbal statements could eventually morph into action.
“Conspiracy myths also prepare the ground for violence, as history has shown. Those who perceive themselves as victims and feel threatened can themselves turn into a threat. Anti-Jewish pogroms throughout history have been the fatal consequence of such obsessive hatred of Jews, as have the antisemitic terrorist attacks worldwide in recent years,” he said. “A recent study has shown that radicalization online takes place four times faster than offline. That is what makes it so important to quickly adjust our laws. This is the thrust of the package of measures put forward by the federal government. I am confident we can achieve a lot through a combination of repression and education. After all, what is ultimately at stake is social cohesion in times of crisis.”
Meanwhile, Jewish groups have scrambled to deal with the threat of rising anti-Semitism in the age of coronavirus. The group “Concert – Together for Israel” strives to bolster Israel’s image and fight modern anti-Semitism, says its job has been made much more difficult in the wake of the pandemic, and many pro-Israel groups are facing potential elimination.
“Generally speaking, one can say that small organizations that rely on a small staff expect a slowdown and a long recovery, but the big organizations that need a large operation worry about their long-term viability in light of the added costs,” Nava Edelstein, the group’s program director says.
Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the head of the Brussels-based European Jewish Association that has led a comprehensive effort to counter anti-Semitism in Europe, told Israel Hayom that he has been overseeing a “virtual command center” that gets daily updates from Jewish communities on online anti-Jewish attacks.
“We constantly see how anti-Semitic voices on the web attribute the virus to a Zionist-Jewish conspiracy, on top over other forms of anti-Semitism that involve graffiti and vandalizing of Jewish institutions,” he said, adding the largest volume of reports originates in France, Romania and Belgium.
“We are considering setting up a center that would monitor events through Jewish communities’ video feeds in real time, so that we can alert security forces when such incidents happen,” he revealed.
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EU Based

Auschwitz EJA Conference

The upcoming EJA conference scheduled to take place in Krakow is just a fortnight away, with its primary focus honing in on the disconcerting surge of anti-Semitism in Europe that has been escalating since the 7th of October. The imminent gathering carries immense significance as it provides a platform for us to collectively confront and address this troubling trend. 🌐 Distinguished speakers and influential stakeholders from various backgrounds will assemble to engage in thoughtful deliberations on these pressing and critical matters.

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Ukraine

European Jewish Association startet Kampagne zur Unterbringung jüdischer Flüchtlinge aus der Ukraine

Nachdem der Krieg in der Ukraine in die zweite Woche geht, erlebt Europa einen enormen Zustrom von Flüchtlingen, die aus der Ukraine in den Westen fliehen. Darunter sind auch zahlreiche ukrainische Juden, die sich in Sicherheit bringen wollen.

Die European Jewish Association (EJA) mit Sitz in Brüssel, ein Dachverband, in dem mehrere hundert Gemeinden auf dem gesamten Kontinent vertreten sind, hat eine europaweite Kampagne gestartet, um vorübergehend Wohnungen, Lebensmittel und Kleidung für jüdische Familien bereitzustellen, deren Leben durch den Konflikt in der Ukraine zerrüttet und zerstört worden ist.

Der Aufruf wurde an jüdische Gemeinden von Lissabon bis Lublin, von Bukarest bis Bordeaux in ganz Europa verschickt.

Der Vorsitzende der EJA, Rabbiner Menachem Margolin, sagte nach dem Start der Kampagne: „Die Geschichte des jüdischen Volkes ist eine Geschichte der Vertreibung, sei es durch Pogrome oder Krieg. Wir wissen nur zu gut, was es bedeutet, wenn man gezwungen ist, von einem Moment auf den anderen zu fliehen. In fast jeder unserer Gemeinden werden Sie solche Geschichten hören. Von Generationen aus Spanien oder Galizien, vom Krieg bis zur Auswanderung nach Israel. Ich sage das, weil wir für diese Katastrophen besonders sensibilisiert sind. Und weil wir so sensibilisiert sind, sind wir dazu bestimmt, unseren jüdischen Nachbarn zu helfen, so wie wir es immer getan haben.“

Er fügte hinzu: „Ich bin zuversichtlich, dass diese Kampagne etwas bewirken wird. Seit Beginn des Krieges haben sich Juden aus ganz Europa an uns gewandt, um zu erfahren, wie sie ihren ukrainischen jüdischen Brüdern und Schwestern in Not helfen können. Wir geben ihnen die Möglichkeit, genau das zu tun, indem wir denjenigen, die in aller Eile und oft mit nichts als den Kleidern auf dem Leib das Land verlassen haben, Unterkunft, Essen und Kleidung anbieten.“

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i24
Czech Republic

Des centaines de dirigeants visiteront l'ancien camp de concentration de Theresienstadt

“Ce qui s’est passé à Terezin est le meilleur exemple des conséquences que peuvent entraîner les fake news”

120 dirigeants, parlementaires et diplomates de toute l’Europe se sont réunis à Prague pour visiter l’ancien camp de concentration de Theresienstadt, où ils allumeront des bougies à la mémoire des 80 000 victimes juives, à l’occasion de la Journée internationale dédiée à la mémoire des victimes de la Shoah qui aura lieu vendredi.

L’Union des organisations juives d’Europe, qui organise l’événement, a lancé l’opération d’allumage des bougies pour la Journée internationale de la Shoah, qui sera distribuée à tous les parlements d’Europe.

Le président de l’Union des organisations juives d’Europe, le rabbin Menachem Margolin, a déclaré à l’ouverture de la conférence que ce qui s’est passé à Terezin est le meilleur exemple des conséquences que peuvent entraîner les fake news. Les nazis ont utilisé le camp comme une “vitrine” pour conjurer les critiques internationales sur les mauvais traitements qu’ils infligeaient aux Juifs dans les ghettos et ont présenté des gens apparemment heureux, y compris des enfants qui mangent à leur guise et mènent diverses activités culturelles – alors que la plupart d’entre eux étaient plus tard transféré dans les camps d’extermination.

“Terezin est un camp où les nazis ont tenté de montrer par la manipulation de films et de photographies un ‘ghetto modèle'”, a-t-il déclaré.  “Aujourd’hui, dans le contexte de l’épidémie de Covid-19, de la guerre en Ukraine et de la diffamation d’Israël, les antisémites utilisent exactement les mêmes méthodes. Le Juif est le bouc émissaire. La polarisation en politique contribue à répandre l’antisémitisme. La législation contre l’abattage rituel en Europe s’inscrit dans cette ambiance. De moins en moins de Juifs en Europe se permettent de montrer leur judéité sans crainte. Si les Juifs quittent l’Europe, ce sera un très mauvais signal de l’état du continent”, a-t-il expliqué.

Margolin a appelé à une coopération entre les parlements, les gouvernements européens et les communautés juives pour lutter contre l’antisémitisme.

46% des incidents antisémites en 2022 ont eu lieu en Europe et 39 % en Amérique du Nord. La propagande occupe 39% des actes antisémites, le vandalisme 28%, les violences physiques 14%, les violences verbales 11% et la délégitimation 7%, a indiqué le nouveau rapport de l’Organisation sioniste mondiale pour l’antisémitisme.

i24
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