Leading Israeli cartoonist fired over a cartoon on PM Benjamin Netanyahu
A leading Israeli newspaper has fired one of its veteran cartoonists after a drawing critical of the country’s new “nation state” law was slammed as antisemitic for depicting politicians as pigs.
The Jerusalem Post dismissed Avi Katz on Wednesday for his illustration portraying prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other members of the Likud party as pigs in clothes along with the caption, “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others” – a quotation from George Orwell’s authoritarian satire Animal Farm.
Speaking to The Independent, Katz said he thought his firing was "idiotic."
"I thought my cartoon was relatively mild, and that firing me over it was idiotic."
The illustration immediately inflamed opinion on social media, where users pointed out that pigs are considered unclean in Judaism.
“In six months, the issue depicted will be forgotten, but this cartoon will be the new Shylock cartoon. It will give permission for hatred of orthodox, of fat, of men, of Jews in general,” one Facebook commenter said.
Knesset member Oren Hazan takes a selfie with Israel’s prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, centre, and MP David Bitan, right of Netanyahu, after a Knesset session passed the contentious nation state bill on 19 July 2018
“The law sucks… but the cartoon is also permanent, uncontainable.”
The picture parodied a photograph of Mr Netanyahu and fellow Knesset members taken as they took a selfie after the nation state bill passed last week.
The new legislation, designed to strengthen Israel’s identity as the “national home of the Jewish people”, has been condemned as discriminatory towards the country’s Arab minority.
Among other measures, it downgrades Arabic from being an official language and encourages settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, and has been met with fierce protests.
The cartoon was published on Tuesday in the Jerusalem Report, a biweekly magazine supplement of the Jerusalem Post. Katz also posted his work to his personal Facebook page, describing the new law as “shameful”.
Following vocal criticism, the Jerusalem Post released a statement on Wednesday announcing that “in accordance with editorial considerations, it was decided not to continue the relationship” with the cartoonist.
Katz has worked for the company since 1990.
In a statement, the Union of Journalists in Israel voiced its support for the cartoonist.
“Causing harm to a journalist because he expressed an opinion, let alone when it was approved by his editors, is a dangerous step that must not be accepted. We call on Katz’s editors to retract this unacceptable step,” it read.
"I’m excited to see the enormous amount of support I’ve seen over the last couple of days," Katz told The Independent.
A crowdfunding page set up by the Animix animation and comics festival to help Katz has already raised 80 per cent of its 80,000 shekel (£16,600) goal.
A statement from the event’s organisers said that while they found the cartoon “shocking”, they believed freedom of speech in Israel must be upheld.
Courtesy: www.independent.co.uk
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Delhi: Father, son held for killing 19-year-old woman in suspected honour killing
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has arrested a man and his son for allegedly murdering his 19-year-old daughter in west Delhi's Hari Nagar area, an official said on Friday.
The case first came to light on April 1 after a PCR call was received around 2 pm, alleging that a woman had been killed by her family members and her body was being taken for last rites, he said.
The accused, identified as Mohammad Maneer (55), a vegetable vendor, and his son Meraj Ali (19), were arrested in connection with the case, the officer said.
The victim had been in a relationship with a man from her native place for the past two years, which was opposed by her father, Maneer and brother Meraj, he said.
"When the girl did not end the relationship despite objections, the family killed her," the officer said.
On April 1, the police said that when their team reached the spot, they found that the woman's body was being taken for burial.
Acting on the input, the burial process was stopped over suspicion of honour killing.
"Police intercepted the family members and took possession of the body," he said.
Police said that the man who had made the PCR told them that the woman was in love with his cousin.
During the inquiry, police also interacted with the PCR caller, who said his cousin, a friend of the deceased, had informed him about the situation and suspected foul play, prompting him to alert the police control room.
The body of the woman was subsequently shifted to the mortuary of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for preservation and postmortem.
Police said that both the crime team and the forensic science laboratory (FSL) team were called to inspect the scene and collect evidence.
Police said that, as per the postmortem report, the cause of death was identified as smothering, indicating that the woman was suffocated.
A preliminary inquiry also revealed that the family had initiated preparations for the last rites soon after the woman's death, raising suspicion about the circumstances.
Initial investigation pointed to the family's opposition to the woman's relationship.
"The family members of the woman saw her with the man, and she was taken back home. We got to know that she was beaten up and even locked inside the house for some days," a source said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, police added.
