Czech parliament condemns antisemitism and anti-Israel boycotts
“I wish to thank our Czech friends for this step, which reflects the true friendship between our countries,” Israeli Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz tweeted.
By TOVAH LAZAROFFMK Israel Katz(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)
The Czech Chamber of Deputies passed a resolution on Tuesday that condemned both antisemitism and anti-Israel boycotts as well as affirmed Israel’s right to self-defense.Both Israeli Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz and Israel’s Ambassador to the Czech Republic Daniel Meron tweeted their appreciation of the resolution.“I wish to thank our Czech friends for this step, which reflects the true friendship between our countries,” Katz tweeted. “I call on more parliaments to follow suit.”Meron tweeted “Thank you!” explaining that the resolution strongly condemns “all manifestations of antisemitism, including against State of Israel, and [condemns] any call for boycotting Israel.”The parliament in January had already voted to recognize the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism.On Tuesday it approved a text that condemned antisemitism against individuals, religious institutions, organizations and the State of Israel. This also includes denial of the Holocaust during World War II in which Nazi Germany killed six million European Jews.The Czech Parliament also condemned groups that called to boycott Israel, its goods, services or citizens. It called on its government not to provide financial support to movements, organizations and associations that supported the boycott of Israel, including within the European Union and the United Nations. Lawmakers in their resolution also rejected any attempts to question the state of Israel’s right to existence or self-defense.
