News Releases 2018
Paris, 9 August 2018
In a letter to Norwegian Airlines Chairman and CEO, Bjorn Kjos, the Wiesenthal Centre Director for International Relations, Dr.Shimon Samuels, lamented that “the pleasure of our flight on Norwegian was dashed by an article in ‘N’, your in-flight magazine.”
The article, entitled 'Import a Community', speaks of the resettlement of migrants across Europe and beyond under the rubric 'Visit Lost Towns', intriguingly includes the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane,”... “The thumbnail depiction is a disconcerting banalization of one of the most brutal atrocities of World War II.”
The article in "N" in-flight magazine and the side-rubric
"Visit the Lost Towns" mentioning Oradour-sur-Glane.
Read more: Wiesenthal Centre to Norwegian Airlines: “Your...
“We are confident that a perpetrator entering the U.K. would be detained for extradition.”
“We are not so sure if they were to enter the U.S. as a ‘Green Card’ holder.”
“We urge Argentina to work with the U.S. to check the ‘Green Card’ list and place the five on a Watch List as agents of terror.”
Buenos Aires and London, 3 August 2018
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre marked the 18 July 24th anniversary of the AMIA Buenos Aires Jewish Centre bombing - that left 85 dead and over 300 wounded - by a round-table at the British Parliament. The meeting’s objective was to examine the application of the pending INTERPOL "Red Notice" arrest warrants for the detention and extradition to Argentina of the Iranian perpetrators.
The Argentine Ambassador to the United Kingdom read a message from his Foreign Minister, Jorge Faurie, stating that “the Argentine Government is fully committed... to ensure that all those involved in the attack are brought before the Argentine courts.”
Read more: Wiesenthal Centre to Argentine Foreign Minister:...
Paris, 3 August 2018
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre has led a campaign against visa refusals for participants in international sports events on grounds of religion, ethnicity, gender, nationality or other forms of discrimination.
World Chess Federation (FIDE) Vice-President I. Gelfer, confirmed by telephone to the Centre’s Director for International Relations, Dr. Shimon Samuels, that in view of the Centre’s intervention, "FIDE has advised Tunisia that, if any player is excluded from the World School Championship of 21-26 April 2019 in Sousse, the event will be moved to Turkey"... bearing in mind that Israelis have no visa problems in that country.
Moreover, another international tournament is scheduled for mid-December in Saudi Arabia, which last year refused visas to Israelis.
FIDE has decided that, "if this is repeated, the event will be cancelled," adding, "an official ruling on this matter has been placed on the FIDE General Assembly agenda meeting in Batumi, Georgia, in October."
"We congratulate FIDE on a significant sports victory for equality," concluded Samuels.
"Her exclusion was announced on 20 July, 'UNESCO International Chess Day'."
"FIDE must suspend Tunisia unless it issues an invitation to Liel."
"Jews, Blacks and Gays will never again be banned from world sport... 1936 Berlin Olympics must never recur."
Paris, 25 July 2018
In a letter to Acting President of the World Chess Federation (FIDE), Georgios Makropoulos, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre Director for International Relations, Dr. Shimon Samuels, expressed concern at "the exclusion of 7 year old Israeli champion Liel Levitan from the International Chess Festival 2018 to be hosted by Tunisia in Monastir, 1-9 September."
Liel Levitan (screenshot from Hadashot TV)
“A meeting dedicated to the memory of assassinated AMIA Prosecutor Alberto Nisman.”
London, 18 July 2018
Today is the 24th anniversary of the AMIA Buenos Aires Jewish Centre bombing, leaving 85 dead and over 300 wounded.
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre in the United Kingdom was hosted by the Henry Jackson Society (HJS) at a Parliamentary event, entitled “In the Shadow of the AMIA Bombing: Global Terrror and the Threat Today.” [see link: <https://henryjacksonsociety.org/event/in-the-shadow-of-the-amia-bombing-global-terror-and-the-threat-today/>].
(from left to right) Tom Wilson, Anita Weinstein, Shimon Samuels, Lord Trimble, Argentine Ambassador Sersale,
Ariel Gelblung, Michael Caplan and Dana Erlich