Monday, June 28, 2004

Sunday

Parade organizers expected 700,000 to attend
to-day's Gay Pride march in Paris
Demonstration against anti-Semitism in Anderlecht

Several hundred people, including elected officials, religious representatives and members of human rights organizations, gathered in Anderlecht this morning before the memorial to Belgium's Jewish martyrs to protest the recrudescence of anti-Semitism.

The rally had been planned long in advance but many present felt increased urgency due to Thursday's assault of four yeshiva students in Wilrijk.





Sarko: 'a Jew struck' is 'a stain that sullies all of France'

Speaking before 200 people at ceremonies celebrating the tenth year of a synagogue's existence in Issy-les-Moulineaux (Hauts-de-Seine), Finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy said that "when a Jew is struck or insulted, this is a stain that sullies all of France."

"The question of anti-Semitism concerns all of the French community as a whole. [...] Human beings have the right to practice their religion and to pass it on to their children. Jews are French like others and have the right to practice their religion as others do," he added. In conclusion, he said, "faced with anti-Semitism, there can be but one method: the firmest and most severe of sanctions." Before speaking, he planted a tree on the premises.

Suspicious Package Found Onboard TGV

A TGV was stopped early Sunday afternoon 92 km south of Paris after a suspicious package was discovered on board and all passengers were transfered to another train. Bomb technicians were dispatched to determine its exact nature.

No comments: