That’s a nice sound bite but when a parliamentarian called Jews a national security risk to the nation the Orbán government refused to censure the legislator or use existing law to prosecute. Rather they keep repeating that they have a zero-tolerance policy toward antisemitism. Ira Forman, who served as special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism during the second Obama term, told us, “It’s fascinating how the Orbán regime responds to charges of antisemitism. State Department spokesperson Ned Price joined the chorus of criticisms provoked by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s warning earlier this week that Europeans should not “become peoples of mixed race.” Speaking at the daily press briefing, Price said that Orbán’s comments “are not reflective of the shared values that tether the United States to Hungary, that serve as the foundation between the relationship between our two peoples, and that serve as a basis for the relationship between the United States and our other allies, whether it’s in Europe or the Indo-Pacific, or elsewhere.” Such attacks have been continuously directed against all three Commissioners throughout our tenure, and it is to this that Commissioner Kothari was making reference.” She further claimed that Kothari’s “Jewish lobby” comment was misquoted, saying, “The Commission takes great exception to personal attacks against individual Commissioners appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. This is yet another example of the Commission’s anti-Israel bias, and why this open-ended inquiry must be halted and disbanded.”ĬOI Chair Navi Pillay sent a letter Thursday to UNHRC President Federico Villegas alleging Kothari’s comments were “deliberately taken out of context.” In the letter, Pillay wrote that the Commission of Inquiry “does not question the status or United Nations membership of either of the concerned states of its mandate.” Jacky Rosen (D-NV) mirrored their sentiments in a statement to Jewish Insider, saying, “The antisemitic comments made by a member of the UN Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry on Israel are outrageous and deeply offensive. Kothari, which are outrageous, inappropriate, and corrosive.” We categorically reject antisemitism and anti-Israel bias, including the comments by Mr. Ambassador to the UNHRC Michèle Taylor and State Department Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt said in a joint statement, “The United States is in solidarity with the Government of Israel and the Israeli people.
Many members of Congress opposed the COI’s formation, citing it as biased against Israel, and even introduced legislation to disband the commission, whose mandate is open-ended, in the form of the COI Elimination Act. Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry on Israel, which was created last year in the wake of an 11-day conflict between Israel and terror groups in Gaza. They, in fact, consistently, either directly or through the United States, try to undermine UN mechanisms.” He made the additional claim that “the Jewish lobby or specific NGOs” largely controlled social media. Because… the Israeli government does not respect its own obligations as a U.N. Miloon Kothari told the outlet that he “would go as far as to raise the question of why even a member of the United Nations. Human Rights Council came under fire this week for antisemitic comments made during an interview with anti-Israel publication Mondoweiss. Print the latest edition here.Ī former special rapporteur on the U.N.
Louis Jewish groups host Cori Bush amid scrutiny of congresswoman’s ties to antisemitic activist Department of Education to open investigation into USC over antisemitism allegations and Israeli tech startup Wilco closes experience gap for aspiring software engineers.
For less-distracted reading over the weekend, browse this week’s edition of The Weekly Print, a curated print-friendly PDF featuring a selection of recent JI stories, including: White House to name Shelley Greenspan new Jewish liaison The two candidates vying to succeed Boris Johnson Senate Republicans demand answers on suspected Iranian activity in Argentina Larry Summers: Donate to community college over the Ivy League In surprise announcement, Milwaukee Bucks exec Alex Lasry ends Senate bid in Wisconsin Inside Glenn Ivey’s victory over Donna Edwards St.