British Nightclub Waiters?
The Guardian has a perplexing story:
“Two British nightclub waiters have been arrested after arson attacks on a historic Jewish synagogue on the Greek island of Crete which have drawn condemnation from around the world.
The men, aged 23 and 33, are in custody alongside a 24-year-old Greek man after the restored medieval Etz Hayyim Synagogue in the port city of Hania, one of the most noted Jewish temples in Greece, was twice set alight this month.
The fires, which destroyed 2,500 rare books and manuscripts, sparked alarm among the 8,000 Jews in Greece. The US state department said the attacks were “clearly intended to intimidate and terrorise Greece’s Jewish community”.
The arsons were the latest of several incidents of antisemitic vandalism across Greece, including attacks on synagogues and cemeteries in Larissa, Volos, Thessaloniki, Ioannina and Athens.
During the first fire, on 5 January, a bottle with flammable liquid was found, according to witnesses. That fire was extinguished. But another, on 16 January, destroyed books and computers as well as causing considerable damage to art work and to the interior of the building, which is Crete’s only synagogue.
The 33-year-old Briton, who has not been named, is accused of being the perpetrator of that second attack but denies the charges. The Greek man and 23-year-old Briton are accused of keeping watch. Two US citizens are being sought in connection with the first attack, with the three detained also accused of involvement, said local police.”
Sometimes, I think newspapers obscure more than they enlighten. Unless there’s something about “nightclub waiters” about which I’ve been totally ignorant.
mesquito
23/01/2010 at 01:29
Not sure, but it could be that they are BNPers are neo-nazis.
If you think about it there are a LOT of attacks for the size of the country..“attacks on synagogues and cemeteries in Larissa, Volos, Thessaloniki, Ioannina and Athens.”
I’d like to find out more, a bit more background.
modernityblog
23/01/2010 at 02:05
Equally disturbing has been the relatively apathetic public response to the incident. According to this Dutch newspaper:
“The prestigious Kathimerini newspaper published three articles this week expressing concern not only over the violence itself, but also over the indifferent response to it. Not a word has been spoken about the violence on TV, and the new minister for civil protection has also remained mum. Greeks are, some say, perhaps not anti-Semitic, but they are also not anti-anti-Semitic.”
Judeosphere
23/01/2010 at 20:53
Excellent point, that’s part of the impression I get, I wonder about the political culture in Greece and how strong “anti-Zionism” is?
I suspect that would shape attitudes too?
modernityblog
23/01/2010 at 21:03
Some good background info in this report:
http://www.tau.ac.il/Anti-Semitism/asw2008/greece.html
Money quotes:
The mainstream daily Avriani published an antisemitic article on its front page on November 4. “The anticipated victory of Obama in the US elections signals the end of Jewish domination,” it said. Everything is changing in the US and we hope that it will be more democratic and humane.”
There was a revival of anti-Israelism in Greece with the onset of Israel’s Gaza operation in late December after a period of relatively little anti-Israel foment, and the level of antisemitic activity escalated. Greek public opinion is overwhelmingly pro-Palestinian. Politicians, popular Greek figures, senior clerics, public administrators and mayors, as well as the mass media, made harsh anti-Israel statements that were often tainted with antisemitism (such as drawing parallels between Israelis and Nazis and Gaza and Auschwitz).
Judeosphere
23/01/2010 at 21:23
Thanks I didn’t realise that.
modernityblog
23/01/2010 at 23:25
The reason it is perplexing is that something has been left out. Be sceptical.
Roger Pearse
26/01/2010 at 23:50
I am
modernityblog
26/01/2010 at 23:56
Terminal 119: The neo-nazis burn synagogues – The Anti-Nazis are put on trial!
entdinglichung
01/02/2010 at 17:23
thank ent, I’m going to read up more on this,
modernityblog
01/02/2010 at 17:28
some more info
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1190941_two_arrested_over_attack_on_synagogue?rss=yes
how can we know if they were bnp?
stepan
03/02/2010 at 14:33
thanks, stepan I DO appreciate that, if you hear more, please do let me know
modernityblog
03/02/2010 at 15:17
[...] leave a comment » I must say a hearty thanks to one of my readers, Stepan, who provided a link to the Manchester Evening News and an update on that awful attack on a synagogue in Crete. [...]
Attack on Crete’s Only Surviving Synagogue. « ModernityBlog
03/02/2010 at 15:18
In fact I found some more
http://abravanel.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/second-arson-in-hania-synagogue/
http://abravanel.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/update-hania-synagogue-arson/
http://abravanel.wordpress.com/2010/01/20/budapest-ioannina-hania/
stepan
03/02/2010 at 17:12
Thanks, I’ll try and post on it later on
modernityblog
03/02/2010 at 17:18