In the French daily Le Monde, Raphaël Haddad, president of the Union of Jewish Students in France (UEJF), expresses concern that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could be spreading to France: "In the past ten days France has seen a shocking new outbreak of anti-Semitism - mostly on the fringes of pro-Palestinian demonstrations. Grenoble, Villeurbanne, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Aubervilliers, Lingolsheim, Paris, Nice, Lyon, Metz: The list of cities where anti-Semitic actions have taken place is growing. Our nightmare has reawakened. ... First the attacks on buildings ... then on people. ... Defaced businesses, attacks on synagogues, Jews as the target of insults, threats and beatings. ... Until only recently no one would have believed that such an intense wave of anti-Semitism could break out again. During the second Intifada in 2001 it took 400 acts of aggression before a new outbreak of anti-Semitism was recognised. ... We don't have to wait for someone to be killed to make an appeal for peace in the Republic." (12/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Minorities, » Social movements, » France
All available articles from » Raphaël Haddad

The war in Gaza has spawned worldwide condemnation of Israel. The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten criticises calls for a boycott of Jewish businesses in Denmark: "It seems that a whole slew of parties, organisations and outstanding people who limit their criticism to Israel have a patent on goodness, justice and humanism. Margrethe Vestager, leader of the Radical Liberal Party, gloats over her humane buying behaviour which is clearly a cut above that of those who do not share her opinion. The hatred in Denmark of the only democracy in the Middle East and its fight for survival goes hand in hand with political naivity and self-satisfied political correctness. The Palestinian rhetoric of violence as well as the real use of violence together with Nazi symbols awaken memories of a dark past that we should never forget and from which everyone should have learned." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Minorities, » History, » Denmark

The daily Polska comments on the anti-Isreali protests in Italy and notes their left-wing roots. "In Rome the leftist Italian trade union Flaica-uniti-Cub distributed flyers calling for a boycott on Jewish businesses in protest at Israel's attacks on Palestine. ... Italian journalists have noted the spirit of the fascist Italian Mussolini has been revived along along the Tiber River. Political expert ... Friedman Buttner has ... said that the teachings of Karl Marx have gone to the Italian Left's head. This is true, for nowadays we seldom recall the intense anti-Semitism of this idol of the Left. ... Marx's hatred of the bourgeois and capitalism led to the birth of an ideology that is among the most criminal in the history of mankind. ... In his work 'On the Jewish Question' Marx wrote: 'What is the secular basis of Judaism? Practical need, self-interest. What is his worldly God? Money.'" (13/01/2009)

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All available articles from » Łukasz Adamski

A latent anti-Semitism is influencing the debate over Gaza, writes De Volkskrant newspaper: "The propaganda war is at least as virulent as the fighting on the front. But even if perceptions of reality do not always agree with reality itself, the emotions that this conflict has engendered are a political fact. The hasty and uncritical support shown by Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende and Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen immediately after the start of the Israeli air attacks did the cabinet a disservice. ... Every standpoint in this conflict will meet with criticism, but that is no reason to ignore criticism altogether. After the murder of the film director Theo van Gogh [who expressed criticism of Islam] and before [Geert Wilders' anti-Koran film] Fitna came out, people rightly called on Dutch Muslims to keep a cool head. With success. If we want to avoid tensions now, the government must present its views to the public more convincingly." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Netherlands, » Middle East

Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has offered Romania a direct gas pipeline as well as a share in the South Stream Pipeline. The daily Romania Libera writes: "Putin wants to remove Romania from the camp of those European countries who want the EU to counter their dependence on Moscow in energy matters. There are not many topics we can be proud of having put on the agenda in Brussels, but we have always been consistent regarding energy. Bucharest has always championed the idea of a common EU energy policy. ... We must not let a direct gas deal with Moscow sway us from this position. ... The South Stream Pipeline, which Putin has invited us to participate in, is a political venture ... whose sole purpose is to compete against the Nabucco project (a gas pipeline Russia wants nothing to do with)." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Energy, » Russia, » Europe, » Romania
All available articles from » Cristian Ghinea

The Swedish Liberals yesterday presented their programme for the European Parliament elections. Among other things it calls for Sweden to join the Eurozone. Although this issue won't be decided by the European Parliament it will heighten the party's profile, writes the Stockholm evening paper Expressen: "Hopefully the clear pro-EU profile of the Liberals and the heated election topics will boost voter turnout, which tends to be low in EU elections. The Liberals are a necessary component in EU policy and amid the grey mass of the [vacillating] parties and the neo-nationalist Conservatives; in a Sweden that is still suffering the consequences of the referendum of 1994. In a Swedish debate on Europe that is still paying the price for the speeches [the former social democratic prime minister] Tage Elrander made in 1961, when the Social Democrats closed the door on European cooperation." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Sweden

Helsingin Sanomat criticises the huge amount of bureaucracy involved in travel between Russia and Finland, and calls for visas between the two countries to be abolished: "750,000 visa applications were made by Russians wishing to come to Finland last year, 520,000 of them from the consulate in St. Petersburg alone. There the number of applications has doubled in just a few years. ... The good thing about this is that the number of Russians coming to Finland has risen sharply. The bad thing is the perennial visa hassles. The number of visa applications that are turned down is negligible, so the only sensible thing to do is to abolish them as soon as possible. ... Finland cannot decide visa questions alone, or bilaterally with Russia. The topic requires negotiation between Russia and the EU. Russia affirms that it is open for negotiation and that the EU is the one holding things up. But in fact the problem is much more complex." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Tourism, » Finland, » Russia

In the daily Delo, Branko Soban asseses the conduct of the EU in the current Gaza conflict between Israel and Hamas and delivers a damning judgement. "A year before the end of his second term in office Bush wanted to make up for his failures on the Israeli-Palestinian front with the Annapolis Peace Conference. His administration should have prepared earlier and more thoroughly for Annapolis. ... But the EU too, which 'uncritically' boycotts Hamas and has stopped humanitarian supplies, has also been harshly criticised in this most recent conflict. ... Despite the Israeli massacre which the Palestinian side is already calling a holocaust, Slovenia abstained from voting at the United Nations Human Rights Council, which has strongly condemned the bloodbath in Gaza. This is a disgrace for which there can be no excuse. No less than 13 states, most of them European, abstained from voting in Geneva - the official version being that the resolution wasn't balanced enough. And what about the dead children? The deliberate destruction of schools and mosques? Where is the balance here? The spirit of the European Union which politicians are so fond of invoking has apparently died once again. In Sarajevo, Srebrenica and Baghdad, and now in Gaza too." (14/01/2009)

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All available articles from » Branko Soban

In view of uncertainty over US President elect Barack Obama's stance on the US missile defence shield, Prague-born publicist Jacques Rupnik analyses the project in the liberal weekly Respekt, pointing out that technical problems persist to this day. The agreement by Poland and the Czech Republic to the assembly of components is for this reason "above all a test of both countries' loyalty to their American ally. But they both have behaved poorly. First they made bilateral agreements with the US. Then when they noticed that Russia as well as some Europeans had problems with this, they tried to present the project as beneficial for the entire alliance. ... But now it is hardly possible to stop the project. Moscow could understand that as an admission that its pressure and threats had won out." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Poland, » Czech Republic, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Jacques Rupnik

The Spanish daily La Vanguardia stresses the significance of Germany's second rescue package for Europe: "At last [Chancellor] Angela Merkel has been convinced of the need to increase public spending to counter a recession which is deeper than had been initially feared, as most European states urged at the last European summit. ... The plan in question was - not without considerable difficulties - negotiated between the two major parties, the Conservatives (CDU) and the Social Democrats (SPD) who together form the ruling coalition, despite the fact that there are still groups who believe the plan doesn't go far enough. The great hope is that it will stabilise Europe's largest economy, which since the second half of 2008 has seen a downswing. This is important for everyone." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Economic Policy, » Germany, » Europe

The crisis of the US automotive industry is hitting Sweden hard. General Motors is considering closing down its Swedish affiliate Saab if the Swedish government does not step in, or if no buyer can be found. The country's Minister for Enterprise Maud Olofsson has a problem, Dagens Nyheter newspaper writes: "The government, and all of us, must look the truth in the eye. Saab is a make of car that no one is interested in, and that cannot be made interesting enough. That is painful for everyone who has worked with this car which originated in the aircraft industry. It is painful for everyone who currently works for Saab and for everyone who owns a Saab and has invested their feelings and money in their car. But a government that has divested itself of its shares in the profitable company Vin & Sprit [producer of alcoholic beverages] cannot dally around with an unprofitable company like Saab." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Corporations, » Economic Policy, » Sweden

The Italian mafia film "Gomorra" is not to compete for an Oscar in the best foreign film category. The left-liberal daily La Repubblica comments: "It's a scandal that the film that has stoked hopes of a rebirth of Italian cinema won't even be given the chance to win or lose. Did the Americans not understand the film? Are they weary of violence? Hardly. The mafia is well-known in America, and films like Germany's 'The Baader Meinhof Complex' or Israel's 'Waltz with Bashir' (both among the nine candidates) are no less violent. ... All that can be said for certain is that despite all the excitement in Italy, the country, and not just its cinema, has little reason to be popular abroad, and any excellent qualities it may possess fail to turn up in international research. It's as if the Italians and their country had long since turned into ghosts." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Film, » Italy, » U.S.
All available articles from » Natalia Aspesi

I Kathimerini newspaper analyses what consequences the Gaza war could have for Israeli artists: "Sometimes it is inevitable that a country's citizens and artists are judged alongside its political and military leaders. The most likely thing is that we will never see [rock singer] Aviv Gefen in Greece. In any case, cultural exchanges between Greece and Israel already seem very one-sided. We export a lot of Greek music but we import almost nothing. For the most part we are ignorant of the intensity of public debate in Israel and of the different voices striving to be heard. ... If we unconsciously isolate an entire country, we simply prevent these voices from reaching our ears." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Cultural Policy, » Weltanschauung, » Greece, » Israel
All available articles from » Dimitri Rigopoulos

Israel and Hamas are opposing the presence of independent news reporters in the war in Gaza. But with this attitude Israel is casting doubt upon its reputation as a democracy, writes the Süddeutsche Zeitung. "Israel and Hamas are shaking hands in silent agreement. Neither side has any interest in independent reporting on this war. But there is a decisive difference. Israel is considered the only democracy in the Middle East, a country governed by the rule of law. But it is not living up to this reputation at present. The highest court in Israel has complied with a suit by journalists based in the country and called upon the government to allow a pool of eight reporters to enter Gaza. But hundreds of foreign correspondents remain standing on the border. Only a small handful were allowed to meet briefly with the Israeli army in the backmost lines. That was not what the Israeli court had in mind with its media judgement." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Media policy, » Middle East, » Israel
All available articles from » Tomas Avenarius

The BBC will start broadcasting a Persian-language television programme today. The Times welcomes the move as "timely, necessary and challenging. ... The BBC is certain to attract an enthusiastic response [among Iranians] to its television service. Tehran's monopoly of its airwaves will be broken. ... There is a clear political agenda here. The World Service is funded directly by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. ... The aim with the new Persian service is not regime change, but engagement. ... The Persian service ... has been launched at an opportune moment. The incoming Obama administration has said that it wants to begin a dialogue with Iran. Fresh confrontations still loom, however, over Iran's nuclear ambitions, its support for terrorist groups and opposition to any Middle East peace initiative. Iran is a vibrant, argumentative and divided society that faces elections in May. The battle between pragmatists and hardliners will be intense. The BBC can and will influence that debate." (14/01/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Audiovisual Media, » Media policy, » United Kingdom, » Iran