Lviv – The author of the antisemitic Nativity scene in the village of Mala-Turia is a graduate of the Faculty of Journalism at Lviv University, writer Halyna Lytsur-Shchadei.

Halyna’s short story collection “Take Life” entered the BBC’s long list “Book of Rock-2019” and received the regional literary award named after Irina Wilde.

For the “Jew” Character, who is called by the word “ж” (жид – kike), Halyna wrote the following text: “Good morning, good day!” I walk around the world like this. And I only stop where you can buy and sell. “ж” is modern and dynamic, a Kolomoisha (a pun. A connection between the name Kolomoisky and the name Moisha. This refers to the oligarch Igor Kolomoisky) is honored. Whoever lets “ж” into the house, he will have no more light.

In her FB Halyna wrote that this series is a contribution to the victory over the enemy. She was asked by Eduard Dolinsky, Ukrainian Jewish committee director how does antisemitism help in fighting the enemy?

The writer stated that “ж” is not a Jew, He is a folkloristic figure devoid of ethnic affiliation. He replies to her: “a character who dressed like a Jew, spoke like a Jew, who had a wife Sarah and called “ж”?”

Halyna again said that Jews and “ж” are not identical concepts, and “ж” is a speculator.

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French comedian Dieudonné Mbala Mbala apologized to those he hurt, especially his “compatriots in the Jewish community”, on January 10 in the French-Israeli newspaper Israel Magazine. Dieudonné, condemned several times for defamation, racist insults or even apology of terrorism, had for example brought up on stage the negationist Robert Faurisson during his shows.

The Franco-Israeli monthly newspaper explains that after considering a meeting with the French comedian and Francis Lalanne, it was decided “that the comedian write what he had to say to those he had mistreated so much, the Jews, and from whom he wanted to ask forgiveness”. An open letter ensued entitled “I ask forgiveness. Dieudonné”.

“It’s true, I have sometimes gone too far and show excesses, inappropriate provocations. For all these faults and excesses, I ask forgiveness”, recognizes in this text the controversial humorist. Dieudonné confirmed to our colleagues at Parisian that it is indeed his own text.

“I would also like to ask forgiveness from all those whom I may have offended, shocked, hurt through some of my artistic gestures”, can we read in the open letter. I am thinking in particular of my compatriots in the Jewish community, with whom I humbly admit having indulged in the game of one-upmanship.

Dieudonné explains that he is not looking for “any excuse, no extenuating circumstance because no one has one when he can see that he has harmed his neighbor”.

André Darmon, the editor of the magazine, judges the text “sincere”: “Time will tell if Dieudonné was sincere”, he also underlines.

The comedian also takes the opportunity to specify the end of his career: “My age, my health invite me today to prepare my retirement in Cameroon, on the land of my ancestors”. Dieudonné “aspires to leave the stage in peace: in peace with myself, in peace with others, in mutual and sincere respect”.

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Among all politically motivated crimes recorded by the police, the proportion of antisemitic crimes increased by around a quarter on average in this period compared to the last published figures in 2018. In investigations by the public prosecutor’s office into so-called hate crimes, the cases increased by around half.

In the past two years, there have been shameful events that have played down the Shoah, mocked the victims, or confessed to National Socialist sentiment, said Hoff. As examples, he cited signs worn during corona protests with the inscription “Unvaccinated” based on the “Jewish star” patch and the sawed-off seven trees near the Buchenwald memorial, which were dedicated to the children killed there and six named prisoners.

“Fighting the toxic spirit of a misguided worldview that emerges from such action remains the task of all public institutions, but also of civil society, where the state cannot fulfill this mandate alone,” said Hoff. He is happy about the wide-ranging commitment in Thuringia, through which the Jewish heritage can be preserved and experienced. A good example was the past theme year “Nine Centuries of Jewish Life”.

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The hate incident happened at Sir Robert Borden High School on Dec. 1. The students have been charged with public incitement of hatred, mischief and criminal harassment, Ottawa police said in a news release Tuesday.

The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board confirmed the incident last month. The board said that after an extracurricular activity, two Jewish students were called into a room by other students.

When they entered, they witnessed a large swastika displayed on the floor and one student made a Nazi salute. Police said Tuesday that one student created and displayed a hate symbol in the school and another used antisemitic language and gestures.

The two students aren’t being named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. They are due in court “at a later date,” police said.

The OCDSB said the school administration launched an investigation as soon as it became aware of the incident. The board said following the investigation, a plan was put in place to discipline the students responsible.

In a statement on Tuesday, the OCDSB said it stands against antisemitism.

“Jewish students, families and staff have the right to feel safe at school and in the community. Acts of antisemitism, hate and intolerance are unacceptable,” a board spokesman said. “Since this incident, the school has taken a number of steps to respond to concerns of antisemitism and the safety of students. This work will continue in 2023.”

The incident sparked a discussion at a board meeting in late December, with some expressing concern the board was not doing enough to respond to rising hate toward Jewish students and staff.

The spokesman said Tuesday that prior to the winter break, a presentation to Sir Robert Borden students highlighted some next steps, including growing student and staff understanding of antisemitism and its impacts, reporting incidents of antisemitism and improving followup with students and families impacted, and working with the school’s Jewish Student Union to support students.

The school is also partnering with Jewish organizations in assemblies and classroom learning, the statement said, and learning about the Holocaust, particularly in preparation for International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 27 and Holocaust education month in November.

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A 21-year-old man is said to have smashed the window of a synagogue on New Year’s Eve in Ermreuth in the Forchheim district and then tried to start a fire. As the police headquarters in Upper Franconia and the public prosecutor’s office in Bamberg announced on Tuesday, witness statements and video surveillance of the synagogue led to the 21-year-old suspect being arrested last Thursday.

He is accused of vandalizing a window and throwing firecrackers inside. He wanted to start a fire, the police and prosecutors continued. According to initial findings, the investigators are assuming an anti-Semitic crime with a right-wing extremist background.

Due to the lack of a risk of absconding, the investigating judge at the district court in Bamberg refused to issue an arrest warrant last Friday. The suspect was therefore released. In the meantime, the public prosecutor’s office has lodged an appeal against this decision. Since Tuesday, the Central Office for Combating Extremism and Terrorism (ZET) has taken over the investigation.

Ludwig Spaenle (CSU), the anti-Semitism commissioner of the Bavarian state government, is appalled. He classifies the attack as “particularly disgusting” because particularly important and positive work is being done around the synagogue. Wanting to damage this cultural commitment with an attack is regrettable. Spaenle only visited the facility in November and met Mayor Martin Walz (CSU), whom he now offered to help if that should become necessary.

The village of Ermreuth has around 900 inhabitants and is part of the market town of Neunkirchen am Brand. The two-storey building of the former synagogue dates from the 19th century and was used for Jewish services until around 1930. The building was damaged and desecrated during the National Socialist pogroms in November 1938, but not destroyed.

In the past, Ermreuth was in the headlines several times because of right-wing extremists. From the late 1970s, Ermreuth Castle in the Forchheim district was the headquarters of the right-wing extremist organization Wehrsportgruppe Hoffmann, which was banned in January 1980, as Günter Dippold, district home attendant for the Upper Franconia district, confirmed when asked by BR. In 1981, the police carried out excavations around Ermreuth Castle to find further evidence against the military sports group. Investigators had previously been able to secure weapons, explosives and ammunition.

The leader of the group, Karl-Heinz Hoffmann, still lived in the castle years later. Among other things, the Oktoberfest attack in 1980 went to the account of the Wehrsportgruppe. According to current knowledge, there is no connection between the crime and the military sports group.

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The Group, with its post on Facebook, condemns the event, complaining that “Members of fascist groups this time covered a large part of the mural with swastikas and symbols of hate, trying once again to tarnish what themural symbolizes and reminds: The greatest crime in the history of mankind, the Holocaust.” while stressing that they will proceed with the immediate restoration of the mural.

Full announcement:

Today 10/1 we found that the Jewish Holocaust mural on the eastern fence of the New Railway Station implemented in 2021 by the Vardar Neighborhood Group* was vandalized for the second time by Nazi nostalgics.

Members of fascist groups this time covered a large part of the mural with swastikas and symbols of hate, trying once again to tarnish what themural symbolizes and reminds: The greatest crime in the history of mankind, the Holocaust.

Unfortunately, it is the second time in two weeks that a memorial that honors the long-standing Jewish presence in our city and the victims of the Holocaust has been targeted by neo-Nazi groups, as well as on 28/12 the monument that was erected in 2014 inside the University Campus was desecrated AUTH and is dedicated to the old Jewish Cemetery.

Such acts of blatant hatred do not honor the culture and history of our city and are typical of the ignorance, illiteracy and anti-Semitic beliefs of some of our brazen fellow citizens. However, they are the ones that keep us alert and remind us how the “germ” of racism and intolerance is still active in our societies, reinforcing even more the need to unite and resist collectively against all forms of violence and social stigmatization.

The members of the Vardaris Neighborhood Group condemn this heinous act and state that, as in previous similar circumstances, they will proceed with the immediate restoration of the mural and that they will be there every time something similar happens, responding with action and creation against the rhetoric of hatred.

We invite the active citizens of the neighborhood and the city as a whole on Tuesday 17/1 at 15:00, at the point of the mural (Michael Kalou & Dim. Margaropoulou corner) to erase the smudges that tarnish and offend the conscience of every thinking citizen, so that to once again deliver to the city what it deserves, the right to memory!

* The Neighborhood Group of Vardaris consists of people in the recovery phase, its employeesSelf-Help Promotion Program , active residents of the area and has the support of a large number of citizens, agencies and collectives of the city.

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Two separate incidents were reported to the police, but because the suspects are juveniles, charging them with crimes is “challenging,” Brokos said. Nonetheless, she added, it is crucial to report these types of incidents to law enforcement.

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Ball was a prominent German author and a foundational figure of the European Dadaism movement. The prize of $10,750 is awarded once every three years and this year was supposed to go to a German filmmaker and artist Hito Steyerl. However, she told the German press that “there is no prize this year.”

The Pirmasens authorities confirmed that the nomination committee together with Steyerl and another awardee Olivia Werzel decided to suspend the award due to concerns about Ball’s antisemitism. 

“At the suggestion of Hito Steyerl, the city of Pirmasens, together with the two prize winners and the nomination committee, decided to suspend the awarding of the Hugo Prize in 2023 in favor of an open debate about antisemitic clichés in Hugo Ball’s time and today,” the city’s official website said, referring to a panel discussion “on contemporary anti-Semitism in the work of Hugo Ball and its relevance to the present” that will be held on January 23. 

“Antisemitic ideas were widespread in the early 20th century, and many artists also promoted such resentments. Hugo Ball did the same, for example in his 1919 publication ‘On the Critique of the German Intelligentsia,’” the statement added. 

In the mentioned book, Ball shared his views on what he considered was a period of decline in Germany caused by the Jews. The discussion will also touch on the “antisemitic and racist prejudices and incidents in the present.”

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The Times of Israel tallied figures for all of 2022 by collating monthly New York Police Department reports on hate crimes in the city. The police department released figures for December on Thursday, showing 11 antisemitic incidents last month, a relatively low amount.

Throughout 2022, however, the data shows that there were 263 hate crimes reported, an average of one antisemitic incident in the city every 33 hours.

The tally underlines a sharp increase in anti-Jewish incidents that mirrors nationwide trends, more than doubling the 121 antisemitic crimes reported in 2020 and rocketing past the 196 incidents reported in 2021.

In 2019, the first year the NYPD began organizing data differently on hate crimes reports, there were 242 anti-Jewish bias incidents.

According to the police’s hate crimes dashboard, which includes annual data for 2022 through September, Jews were targeted last year far more than any other group.

The incidents in the past year range from violent assault to verbal harassment, property damage, and antisemitic graffiti.

Jewish security groups have said that many attacks likely go unreported, though observers note that some of the increase in antisemitic crimes is due to different and improved reporting methods.

Overall, crime went up in New York City last year, although murders and shootings decreased.

The rise in hate crimes in New York corresponds with nationwide trends. The ADL recorded 2,717 antisemitic incidents across the country in 2021, a 34% increase from the previous year, and the highest since it began tracking in 1979.

Authorities and Jewish groups have struggled to rein in antisemitic attacks in New York City, which is home to over 1 million Jews.

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Superintendent Brian Walmsley says the details involving the threat of one of his now former administrators and their family was disturbing and the investigation will continue until they get to the bottom of who’s behind it.

“That’s kind of the million-dollar question we’re all trying to figure out. Why and how did this happen?” said Superintendent Brian Walmsley on why the administrator received the threat. 

Late last week, Richmond Middle School’s Dean of Students, Michael Woodberg, resigned after he and his family were targeted with an antisemitic death threat.

He was new to our district. He started right before the holiday break.

Walmsley says Woodberg only worked for the district for nine days before the threat was discovered in his office at the middle school.

“It was a decision he was torn to make because he was so excited about joining our team,” Walmsley stated.

The district says they take all threats very seriously and are working with police to make sure students and staff feel safe. That includes having law enforcement patrol the schools this entire week.

“We’ll do whatever we need whether it’s bringing in additional police officers, looking at our own procedures and protocols. We’re committed to their safety,” Walmsley added.

As far as any leads in the investigation, it’s hard to say.

“I have nothing definitive that says I think it’s this person. I just can’t imagine that it would be a staff member to do this, but there were opportunities that it could have been a parent, it could have been a student,” said Walmsley.

Meanwhile, the superintendent has this message for the community…

“Stick with us. We will get through this and we will find the person that did this,” Walmsley stated.

Also on Monday, Superintendent Brian Walmsley sent a letter to parents informing them of a second threat that was made towards another staff member through email. 

That staff member received the email on Friday, Jan. 6. 

After discussing the latest threat with police, school opened as planned on Monday with law enforcement in each of the district’s three buildings.

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