The Fifth “MAHAR” Conference Budva, Montenegro

December 26, 2017

This year “MAHAR” (tomorrow) conference was dealing with the important question:  “Whither will Jewish Diaspora go?”
Rabbi Menachem Margolin (Founder of European Jewish Association) was invited to share his thoughts and ideas on the issue of the European Jewry Future.

For more information on the conference klick HERE

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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.

Prime Minister of Hungary Blessings for Rosh HaShanah18-

The EJA warmly thanks H.E. Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary, for His Excellency’s kind wishes to the European Jewry in light of the recent holiday of Rosh Hashanah

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Der geplante Verkauf von Gegenständen aus dem früheren Besitz ranghoher Nazis hat für Kritik europäischer Juden gesorgt

Der geplante Verkauf von Gegenständen aus dem früheren Besitz ranghoher Nationalsozialisten hat für Kritik europäischer Juden gesorgt. »Der Verkauf dieser Gegenstände ist eine Abscheulichkeit«, schrieben der Vorsitzende der Europäischen Jüdischen Vereinigung (EJA) mit Sitz in Brüssel, Rabbiner Menachem Margolin, und Vertreter jüdischer Gemeinden und der Zivilgesellschaft in einem am Donnerstag veröffentlichten Brief. Darin fordern sie das auf Militaria spezialisierte amerikanische Auktionshaus »Alexander Historical Auctions« auf, die Auktion abzusagen.

WEHRMACHT Zu den an der für den 29. Juli geplanten Auktion angebotenen Gegenständen gehören demnach unter anderem eine goldene Uhr Hitlers, Toilettenpapier der Wehrmacht sowie Besteck und Sektgläser hochrangiger Nationalsozialisten. Es handele sich nicht um das erste Mal, dass das Auktionshaus vergleichbare Objekte zum Verkauf anbiete.

Nazi-Artefakte gehörten in Museen oder an höhere Bildungseinrichtungen, so die Forderung. Die jetzt angebotenen Objekte hätten jedoch zum überwiegenden Teil »geringen bis keinen historischen Wert«, so Margolin in dem Brief weiter. Die Motivation der Käufer lasse sich entsprechend »nur infrage stellen«. kna

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EJA meeting with World Chairman of Keren Hayesod, Mr. Sam Grundwerg

This morning the EJA had the pleasure to welcome a delegation led by the Mr. Sam Grundwerg, World Chairman of Keren Hayesod -UIA
We discussed in length about the different ideas and options for growth and divelopment of Jewish lives in Europe, about the chalenges Jews are facing and the rise of antisemitism.
We concluded with our shared hope of working together on all of these challenges in the upcoming year.

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