This article is from July of this year.....but there was another article in today's USAToday about the same thing......about Jews and anti-semitism in France. And then I posted on here recently where the Jews in Sweden also live in fear for their lives......having to try and hide that they are Jewish. My questions are: didn't Europe learn anything prior to WWII??? What is up with hating Jews and this kind of anti-semitism? Where are they welcome in Europe??? Anywhere???


Fearful Jews Fleeing France
TEL AVIV, Israel, July 28, 2004

Anti-Semitism Up In France

(CBS/AP) Just 10 days after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon enraged French leaders by urging France's Jews to leave for Israel, a group of 200 French Jews arrived to start a new life in the Jewish state, with Sharon at the airport to greet them.

As one émigré told CBS News Correspondent Mark Philips: You wear something to say you are Jewish and you have difficulty. We are afraid. It's simply that we are afraid."

At a welcoming ceremony, Sharon appeared to try to correct the damage from his earlier statements, saying anti-Semitism threatens the Western world, without singling out France.

"We therefore very much appreciate the determined actions of the French government, as well as the French president's stand against anti-Semitism. We hope that his determination will serve as an example to other countries as well."

Softening his earlier appeal, Sharon said, "Jews must come to Israel not because of hatred or fear. Jews must immigrate because it is their homeland."

Emerging from the plane, the immigrants sang "Heveinu Shalom Aleichem," or "we bring peace to you," a traditional Hebrew song of greeting. A heavyset man with a beard, wearing a white shirt and skullcap, danced, his arms above his head.

Carol Ben Guigui, 41, carrying a dog in her arms, said: "In five or 10 years, all the Jews of France will be in Israel because of anti-Semitism."

"Welcome to Israel," Sharon said, "welcome home."

Also at the airport to greet the immigrants were opposition Labor Party leader Shimon Peres and Israel's two chief rabbis.

The group included 50 children and 55 university students, according to the Jewish Agency, the body that deals with immigration to Israel.

In a July 18 speech to visiting Jewish American leaders, Sharon told them France was host to "the wildest anti-Semitism."

"If I have to advocate to our brothers in France, I will tell them one thing: Move to Israel, as early as possible," he said.

The French Foreign Ministry quickly issued a terse statement calling the remarks "unacceptable" and demanding an explanation. The next day, French President Jacques Chirac called on the Israeli prime minister to explain his remarks and said that until he does, Sharon would not be welcome in France.

Israeli media later reported that Chirac sent a message to Israeli President Moshe Katsav, saying he now considered the incident closed. Chirac's office could not confirm the reports.

About half of those who arrived on Wednesday's flight from Paris came under an Israeli government program initiated a year ago bringing French Jewish groups to Israel. The other newcomers also started planning to emigrate long before Sharon's speech last week, immigration ministry officials say.

France is widely viewed in Israel as biased in favor of the Palestinians. The French Jewish community — at 600,000 the third-largest in the world — tends to be strongly pro-Israel, creating friction with a Muslim population of almost 5 million.

The latest French Interior Ministry figures show 510 anti-Jewish acts or threats in the first six months of 2004 — compared to 593 for all of last year.

While France has strengthened security at Jewish institutions and enacted tougher punishments for people convicted of such crimes, a sense of uneasiness and betrayal has some Jews questioning where they belong.

According to the Israeli government, 7,024 immigrants have come from France since 2000 — from a low of 1,160 in 2001 to a high of 2,385 in 2002. In the first half of 2004, 647 French Jews immigrated to Israel."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/...in632610.shtml

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"What exactly is this foreign policy experience?" Obama said mockingly of the New York senator. "Was she negotiating treaties? Was she handling crises? The answer is no."

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the problem probably has more to do with the rising volitility of arabic populations in europe, rather than any recurrence of nazi-ism. according to your article there are 5 million muslims in france, which would make them about 1/12 of the population of France.


even considering that most acts probably go unreported, i wouldn't consider this a striking figure. What it does show is that its increasing, which isn't that suprinsg considering the recent events in the middle east. News events tend to get the loonies out in larger numbers... that doesn't mean there are more loonies, it just means that the same old ones are more active.

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The government of france has taken a strong stance against anti-semitism... i very much doubt that this problem will ever become widespread among the population.

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"The belief that nothing exists outside your own mind--surely there must be some way of demonstrating that it was false" - 1984

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No, and according to the anti-Israel set we're not welcome there either. So that leaves . . . . um . . . . . Atlantis? Brigadoon? (sp?)

This is absolutely no surprise to me.

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“Been living here in galus for a life too long" - Matisyahu

I find it amusing that the most vocal anti-Semites these days are Muslims and their (improbably) leftist allies, like kaladrew.

<--- has no problem with Jews. They generally work hard and mind their own business.

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What have you done for your people today?

People are going to base their opinions of the Jewish people solely on whats happening in Israel\Palestine, so its little wonder that Muslims are vocally anti-semite (although from what I understand, arent some Arabs classed as being Semites??)

Until the problem in the middle-east is resolved, anti-semitism will increase, because Israel is generally seen as the aggressor in the region. Probably unfairly, but when has media coverage ever been unbiased and fair?!

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"The key to immortality is living a life worth remembering"

While I am loathe to ever agree with EuP, in this case he’s right. The left is infested with Jew-haters, and they are loud and woefully misinformed. The ones on the right are a lot more sneaky and underhanded.

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“Been living here in galus for a life too long" - Matisyahu

"has no problem with Jews. They generally work hard and mind their own business. " as long as your patriotic heros can paint a star of David on their windows.

one just needs to do a search for your pro Nazi postings. That's the beauty of the internet.

Care to find a single post where I've said anything negative about Jews?

No? Thought not, liar.

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What have you done for your people today?

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"Traffic is alot lighter on the EXTRA mile."