Palestinian Groups in Sweden Oppose Peace with Israel

 Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are set to resume this week under the guidance of Hilary Clinton. While the world eagerly hopes to get positive outcomes from the talks there are those, including some organizations in Sweden, which strongly oppose any peace treaty between the Palestinians and Israel.

As widely published in Arabic media sources (and easily translated with Google Translate), in fact, “Over twenty Palestinian Arab organizations in Europe have signed a letter criticizing Mahmoud Abbas for negotiating with Israel, saying that he will sell out on Jerusalem and the ‘right of return’ without representing them.”
The petition letter further claimed that; “Abbas is covering up the Zionist killing of Palestinian Arabs, the Judaizing of Jerusalem, and the creation of ghettos for Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank, as well as collaborating with the Israelis”.

The letter concluded that the "Palestinian people" will certainly not tolerate any such moves.

Amongst these 20 organizations three were from Sweden. These “peace protesters” are: Sweden’s Palestinian Engineers Association, the Union of Palestinian Artists in Sweden, and the Union of Palestinian Teachers in Sweden.

Failed terror attack in Denmark

It was during Friday afternoon that an unknown man in his 40s accidently set of an explosion in Hotel Jörgensen in Copenhagen. It is believed that the man’s real target was the Danish newspaper Jyllands Posten which was responsible for publishing the “Mohammed Cartoons” some five years ago.

According to Danish newspaper Extra-Bladet, the man accidently set off his bomb inside a restroom in the hotel while on his way to Jyllands Posten. The newspaper has been under constant threats of terror since its decision to publish cartoons portraying the Islamic prophet Mohammed in 2005.

After the explosion in the hotel the unidentified man was seen running off into a nearby park. Due to his injuries—caused by the explosion—it was later possible to arrest the man. The terror suspect was confirmed as speaking perfect English and could be interrogated, but still he has refused to cooperate with the police .

The Danish police believe that the man was on his way to commit a terror attack against the newspaper’s premises since a map with Jyllands Posten’s location circled was confiscated from the man. A handgun has also been found in the same hotel where the man accidentally set off the explosion.

The event which played out on Friday in Denmark is classified as an attempted terror attack and should serve as a reminder to nearby Malmö, just over the bridge from Copenhagen, and the rest of Sweden too, that real terror threats do exist in Scandinavia.

Göteborg Demonstration Promoting Israel Boycott

Last Friday a football game was played between Israel and Sweden at a football stadium in Sweden’s second largest city Göteborg. The game attracted some 150 demonstrators, who had gathered at the initiative of the leftist organization Proletären FF (Proletarians).

Due to the constant threat against Israeli football players the football arena had taken security measures and had several policemen present. It was also stated that both Jewish and Israeli interests had been taken into consideration in the security planning.

Outside the stadium demonstrators were heard shouting “Long live Palestine, crush Zionism” (Leve Palestina, krossa sionismen) as well as "Boycott Israel, long live Palestina” (Bojkotta Israel, leve Palestina) and "Yalla, Yalla the wall shall fall” (Yalla, yalla, muren ska falla). None of the demonstrators acted violently, despite the aggressive tone of the slogans.

During the demonstration the Proletären FF and the Left Party as well as the Socialist Justice party took the opportunity to hand out information. Leader for Proletären (the Proletarians), Bengt Frejd, also encouraged people to “cut all connections to the apartheid system in Israel”.

Happily, due to the low participation rate in the demonstration, it seems rather clear that the Israel haters in the Proletären FF, the Left Party as well as the Socialist Justice do not have a wide support in Göteborg.

Dror Feiler-Putting Out Fires with Gasoline in the War Against Anti-Semitism

A debate is taking place in Göteborg’s daily newspaper Göteborgs Posten (GP) as members of the Ship to Gaza Movement and JIPF (Judar för israelisk-palestinsk fred—Jews for Israeli-Palestinian Peace) contend with those who claim that these two groups are nothing but promoters of aggressive Israel-hatred that leads to anti-Semitism.

The debate started on August 23rd when Dror Feiler, Henry Ascher and Staffan Granér, all members of Ship to Gaza Movement as well as JIPF, attacked an opinion piece written by historian and author Ingrid Lomfors. The three claimed that Lomfors had stated in her piece that “due to the probability that criticism against Israel might be interpreted as anti-Semitism one should refrain from criticizing Israel in order to avoid being allied with anti-Semitic and Israel-hating forces.”

In the piece the three authors also claimed to be on the frontrunners of combating anti-Semitism in Sweden. This is rather bizarre—as Dror Feiler in 2004 created the controversial art installation “Snövit och sanningens vansinne” (Snow White and the Madness of Truth) which was easy to interpret as glorifying a female Palestinian suicide bomber who killed 21 Israeli and injured more than 50. Feiler is also known for openly calling for Israel to recognize Hamas, an organization whose agenda states the organization’s intention to commit genocide—by eliminating the Jewish citizens of Israel. Feiler has also adopted illegal means in order encourage more people to boycott Israel.


It is widely known that Jewish people around the world have a special connection to the state of Israel, even though this doesn’t mean they support the policies of the state. Still, it seems rather odd that Feiler, a known and aggressive Israel-hater should assign himself the position of frontrunner for halting anti-Semitism in Sweden.

Taking part in the debate in GP is Allan Stutzinsky (FP) who asserts that in order for criticism against Israel to avoid anti-Semitic nuances, it is highly important that the debate is “to the point, diverse, balanced and proportional”. He also argues rightly that none of the representatives from Ship to Gaza and JIPF have been able to contribute to such criticism.

Stutzinsky continues:
“All criticism against Israel is not unjustified. Almost all criticism is, on the other hand, one-sided and unbalanced. It is also frightening that it is also untrue”. As we have seen in Sweden, “loud criticism leads to Jewish cemeteries being ravished, Jewish daycare centers and homes for elderly are vandalized, and people who wear Jewish symbols are abused”.

In another response to Feiler and his friends’ first piece, young Jewish students from Göteborg, Johanna Schreiber and Joseph Borenstein call the piece “propaganda rhetoric” and further claim that Feiler and his friends are worsening the situation for young Jews in Sweden. This further enhances the notion that the three representatives from Ship to Gaza and JIPF aren’t suitable candidates to represent Jewish interests.

On August 27th , Ingrid Lomfors decided to reply to the piece written by Feiler, Ascher, and Granér. She then clarifies that she did not write that one should not be able to criticize Israel, but, since criticism can contribute to anti-Semitism, one should consider in which contexts one wants to take part.

She also rightly claims that the trio’s response insinuates that Jews who are openly pro-Israel and connected to a congregation have themselves to blame for the hate aimed towards them. Lomfors ends her response with the quote, “the explanation lies not with the ones subjected to the Jew-hatred but amongst those who hate”.

Today the Israel-hating trio decided to write an additional response. This, of course, promised even more anti-Israel vitriol with arguably anti-Semitic tones. When the trio writes in today’s op-ed: that [Jewish] assemblies’ expressed neutrality towards Israeli policy is good, but is at odds with the experience we have learned”, this emphasizes that the trio clearly doesn’t believe that a Jewish community in Sweden can hold opinions different from the State of Israel. It further emphasizes the argument by Lomfors that the trio is holding members of Jewish communities in Sweden liable for any hate crimes aimed towards them unless they disassociate themselves from Israel.

Feiler, Ascher and Granér also stressed their complaints over the fact that they were never invited to either of the Jewish communities in Göteborg and Stockholm (yes, one can wonder why they are not invited).

If the Israel-bashers Feiler, Ascher and Granér were to be the appointed front-runners in the struggle against anti-Semitism in Sweden, the future for the Jews in Sweden would not look too bright. Thankfully, there are people such as Lomfors and Stutzinsky, who fight publically in media forums. They point out the true agenda of these Israel haters who bring nothing but unjust demonizing to the table. By contributing aggressive criticism of Israe, Feiler and his friends are far from being frontrunners in halting anti-Semitism in Sweden—it would be more accurate to characterize them as individuals responsible for generating hatred against Sweden’s Jewish community and justifying and encouraging Hamas’ genocidal aspirations towards Israel’s Jewish population.

Terrorism—Despite Reality, It’s A Term Too Politically Incorrect for Use in Sweden

This past week Israel and the Palestinian Authority started direct peace talks in Washington. As usual, when peace talks have been initiated, Israel has been subjected to bloody terror attacks. This however, is something that the Swedish media chooses to report on in a limited way, and what is reported is not termed terrorism.

Four Israeli civilians in the West Bank were killed in a terror attack Tuesday this week. The perpetrators were members of the terror group Hamas which currently rules in the Gaza Strip, and which would like to control the West Bank as well. Hamas refuses to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist; in fact the Hamas charter is not only anti-Semitic but genocidal. Hamas has continuously shot deadly rockets into Israeli territory aimed at innocent civilians. The latest terror attack, which was a response to the current peace talks between the state of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, claimed the lives of four Israelis. Among the victims was Tali Ames, who was 9 months pregnant. According to Debka File:

-“The gunmen fired a hail of automatic fire from a following car, then approached the bullet-riddled vehicle and fired again at point-blank range to make sure their victims were dead.”

A second attack which occurred near the settlement of Kochav HaShachar was described by shooting victim Moshe Morani in the Israeli daily Haaretz:

-"‘…As we came round a bend, he came past me and the shooting started.’ The assailants fired continuously, hitting the car door at least 10 times, before an apparent weapons malfunction allowed the passengers to escape from their overturned vehicle, Moreno said.

"‘One of the guns seemed to jam and that gave us the chance to roll away and take cover. I knew that if they reached us, they would spray us with bullets at point blank range.’”

(Debka File reports that the IDF has surmised that the gunmen are operatives from small cells imported from Syria or Lebanon; this may point to a cooperative link with Hizbollah, the Iranian-sponsored terror group.)

To illustrate their joy over the killings, Hamas showed their brutal and repulsive nature and publically celebrated the event, with 3,000 people joining in a celebratory rally. A spokesperson for Hamas in the Gaza Strip called the attack heroic and also eagerly promised that more (murderous) attacks on civilians in Israel were to be expected.

Most Swedish newspapers have reported warmly and in detail on Israel and the Palestinian Authority starting peace talks in Washington. Major Swedish newspapers have chosen in reporting on what was unquestionably a terror attack to completely avoid using the word “terror”. In addition, reports gave minimal details of the victims, mostly describing them as nameless “settlers”.

That the large Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet doesn’t report on the Palestinian terror attack on Israeli civilians does not come as a surprise. The tabloid has a record of spending vast amounts of time demonizing Israel and its political chief editor is a deep-dyed Israel hater . As of this writing, no reports of the attacks have appeared on Aftonbladet’s website.

By avoiding using the term “terrorists” to characterize Hamas, while at the same time constantly reporting news items which portray the Palestinians as the underdogs, the Swedish media continues to create a distorted image of the conflict. By reporting in a minimalist way (or not at all) on the resumption of lethal shootings by Palestinian terrorists against Israeli civilians, the Swedish media presents reports in which Israeli citizens are reduced to numbers and faceless bodies. There is almost no human story presented when it comes to Israeli victims.

When the Swedish media fail to report in an unbiased way on the conflict in the Middle East, continually showing the Palestinians as victims, but failing to identify with the victims of Hamas terror, they grant legitimacy to Hamas. When peace talks fail, the same media will blame Israel alone, contributing to the demonization of the Israel and its people.

Lars Ohly Fails to Differentiate Between Iran and Israel

Before the upcoming elections Party leaders of the Swedish government are all required to disclose their opinions about various political issues, including their favored positions for Sweden’s foreign relations. In a recent interview, the leader of the Swedish Left Party, Lars Ohly, said “it was impossible for him to choose between Iran and Israel in the dilemma the program hosts put in front of him.” 

That Lars Ohly is not a fan of Israel is no secret. During Operation Cast Lead in 2009, Ohly was spotted at an anti-Israel rally wearing a Palestinian-style scarf, with the added political touch of displaying a text in Arabic and a map on which Israel did not exist.  This was commented on by leader of the Liberal People’s Party, Jan Björklund, as perhaps the “most misguided decision by any Swedish politician in modern times”.

Well, now Ohly has done it again, in an interview with Swedish national Radio SR. Ohly was asked a line of questions—and he was given only two options to use in reply, such as “Jesus or Che Guevara” (Ohly chose Jesus). When asked if he would choose “Israel or Iran” Ohly stated that he wasn’t able to pick. After a short moment of hesitation he then started demonizing Israel and only mentioned one regretful comment about Iran.

It can only be described as perverse that Ohly, who aspires to become Sweden’s foreign minister if the opposition wins the fall election, fails to the see the difference between Iran and Israel. Iran is a theocratic country that is actively working to illegally arm itself with nuclear weapons and is a prime promoter of the spread of global terrorism. Israel, on the other hand, is the only true democracy in the Middle East and is the country which has the most in common with Sweden when it comes to values such as human rights and democratic freedoms, rights which Sweden highly values.

If Ohly cannot differentiate between a country that allows for the stoning of women and a country where democratic freedoms and international law are upheld, then it is highly inappropriate for Lars Ohly to remain the leader of the Left party or of any political party. It’s more than obvious that no Swedish government coalition should make him a minister of any kind.

New Fund Proposed for Groups at Risk—Including Malmö’s Jews

During this past week public health minister Maria Larsson (KD) visited the Jewish Community in Malmö. She came in order to talk about the Chrisitian Democrats’ proposal for a new fund which will help provide security arrangements for exposed groups such as the Jews in Malmö.

The Christian Democrats in Malmö have introduced the new initiative for a fund to which exposed minorities can apply for aid. The fund will ease the pressure on small communities—such as the Jewish community in Malmö—which yearly have to pay large security expenses (a third of the budget) in order to keep the members of the community safe.

The leader of the Christian Democrats in Malmö has stated that his party, together with the other allied parties, wants to put forward the motion in the city council after the election. He also stated “that a fund to strengthen the security measures would show that the city is taking responsibility in order to create safety in Malmö.”

If the new fund would become a reality this would greatly ease the high costs that the Malmö Jewish community is dealing with today. A third of the Malmö Jewish community’s expenses are today channeled towards security arrangements, an unsustainable formula for a continuously shrinking community.
Public health minister Maria Larsson of the Christian Democrats is one out of many ministers who have paid visits lately to the targeted Jewish community in Malmö. Larsson herself commented, “I am here to follow up on what has happened. Malmö has a big responsibility to make sure that legal rights are upheld and that everyone can live in a safe and democratic society.”

During 2010 the Malmö Jewish community and its members have been exposed to several attacks. The latest one was when explosive material was set off  outside the community synagogue and shattered several windows in the building. The Jewish community certainly would appreciate this initiative, which, if put into effect, would mean that the government is finally shouldering its responsibility to protect all of its citizens. It is high time for the small and beleaguered Malmö Jewish community to get real government assistance in paying for its heavy security expenses.

But more importantly, the government must develop a clear policy to deal with anti-Semitic hate crime—the root of the whole issue. Unless the authorities resolve to have a “no tolerance” policy on hate crime, the situation will only escalate. The current situation is bad enough to drive Jews out of Malmö now; without serious efforts to change the situation the authorities in Malmö will find that they have been treating the symptoms without recognizing or curing the actual disease—hate crime in Sweden.