Latest news with #antiSemitism
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Retired policeman wrongly arrested over 'thought crime' X post wins £20,000 payout
A retired policeman who was wrongly arrested over a social media post warning of a rise in anti-Semitism has won £20,000 in compensation. Julian Foulkes, from Gillingham, was detained at his home by six officers from Kent Police - the very same force he had given ten years of his life to - after he questioned a supporter of pro-Palestine demonstrations on X in November 2023. In the context of a rise in protests at the start of the Israel-Hamas war - and reports of an anti-Semitic mob storming a Russian airport - Mr Foulkes tweeted an activist: 'One step away from storming Heathrow looking for Jewish arrivals…' Mr Foulkes was later handcuffed on his own doorstep by uniformed officers equipped with batons and pepper spray. Officers searched his home and made comments on his 'very Brexity' book collection, before detaining the 71-year-old for eight hours. This month, Kent Police confirmed the caution was a mistake and had been removed from Mr Foulkes's record. In a letter sent to Mr Foulkes' solicitors, the force has now repeated an apology from the chief constable Tim Smith for the 'distress caused by the actions of his officers'. It also confirmed Kent Police would agree to an out-of-court settlement after Mr Foulkes launched a legal challenge for wrongful arrest and detention. The letter, sent by a lawyer for the force, read: 'I am instructed to accept the offer of early resolution without recourse to litigation by payment of compensation in the sum of £20,000 plus your client's reasonable legal fees in full and final settlement of all prospective claims arising from his arrest on Nov 2, 2023.' Mr Foulkes told The Telegraph that although he was 'naturally pleased' that Kent Police had apologised, it was 'never about money'. 'For me, it was a simple matter of right and wrong and I now need to see that the full investigation I have been promised takes place and necessary actions are taken to prevent any recurrence,' he said. Previously, Mr Foulkes spoke to MailOnline to reveal he had accepted an offer from the Free Speech Union to fund a lawsuit against Kent Police for wrongful arrest and detention. He said: 'This is absolutely an Orwellian-style thought crime. It's absolutely ridiculous because I sent a tweet which was reasonable in the circumstances and it was a tweet based on events I'd read about just the previous day and in the previous week. 'It was taken out of context and I really can't go through all the failings of Kent police - as much as I'd like to - but it's been quite astonishing to me especially as I served with them for 10 years.' Kent Police misinterpreted his tweet as being anti-Jewish but has since removed the caution from Mr Foulkes' record as well as his biometric data that was stored in police files. Mr Foulkes said previously: 'I sat on it for nine months or so wondering what to do - whether to go public but decided it was best to speak out. 'Career-wise it's not going to hurt me. At my age, I've got no plans to work again so that's not something that affects me. 'In practical terms the worst thing was the injustice and that's the thing I wanted to tackle because there's right and wrong - and I knew they were wrong. 'I got the right result in getting the caution overturned and it's not something Kent Police - indeed any police force do very often.'
Malay Mail
12 hours ago
- General
- Malay Mail
Paris Holocaust memorial, synagogues hit with green paint amid rising anti-Semitism over Gaza war fallout
PARIS, June 1 — France's Holocaust memorial as well as three synagogues and a restaurant in Paris were vandalised with green paint overnight yesterday, according to police sources. An investigation has been opened into 'damage committed on religious grounds', said Paris's public prosecutor's office. No arrests have been made. 'I am deeply disgusted by these heinous acts targeting the Jewish community,' French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau posted on X. Retailleau last week called for 'visible and dissuasive' security measures at Jewish-linked sites amid concerns over possible anti-Semitic acts. In a separate message seen by AFP, the interior minister on Friday had ordered heightened surveillance ahead of the coming Jewish Shavuot holiday. 'Anti-Semitic acts account for more than 60 percent of anti-religious acts, and the Jewish community is particularly vulnerable,' Retailleau said in the message seen by AFP. The French Jewish community, one of the largest in the world, has for months been on edge in the face of a growing number of attacks and desecrations of memorials since the Gaza war erupted on October 7, 2023. 'There is deep sadness and outrage... at the sight of these images showing vandalised Jewish sites,' said Yonathan Arfi, head of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF). Paris authorities plan to lodge a complaint over the paint incident, said the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo. 'I condemn these acts of intimidation in the strongest possible terms. Anti-Semitism has no place in our city or in our Republic,' she said. Last year, France registered 1,570 anti-Semitic acts, according to interior ministry figures. By comparison, 436 anti-Semitic acts were recorded in 2022, and since 2012 they have fluctuated between 311 and 851 per year. Several EU nations have reported a spike in 'anti-Muslim hatred' and 'anti-Semitism' since the start of the Gaza war, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. In May 2024, graffiti of red hands was painted beneath the wall at the memorial in central Paris honouring people who saved Jews from persecution during the 1940-44 Nazi occupation of France. — AFP
CNA
20 hours ago
- General
- CNA
Paris Holocaust memorial, synagogues hit with paint
PARIS: France's Holocaust memorial as well as three synagogues and a restaurant in Paris were vandalised with green paint overnight Saturday (May 31), according to police sources. An investigation has been opened into "damage committed on religious grounds", said Paris's public prosecutor's office. No arrests have been made. "I am deeply disgusted by these heinous acts targeting the Jewish community," French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau posted on X. Retailleau last week called for "visible and dissuasive" security measures at Jewish-linked sites amid concerns over possible anti-Semitic acts. In a separate message seen by AFP, the interior minister on Friday had ordered heightened surveillance ahead of the coming Jewish Shavuot holiday. "Anti-Semitic acts account for more than 60 percent of anti-religious acts, and the Jewish community is particularly vulnerable," Retailleau said in the message seen by AFP. The French Jewish community, one of the largest in the world, has for months been on edge in the face of a growing number of attacks and desecrations of memorials since the Gaza war erupted on Oct 7, 2023. "There is deep sadness and outrage... at the sight of these images showing vandalised Jewish sites," said Yonathan Arfi, head of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF). Paris authorities plan to lodge a complaint over the paint incident, said the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo. "I condemn these acts of intimidation in the strongest possible terms. Anti-Semitism has no place in our city or in our Republic," she said. Last year, France registered 1,570 anti-Semitic acts, according to interior ministry figures. By comparison, 436 anti-Semitic acts were recorded in 2022, and since 2012 they have fluctuated between 311 and 851 per year. Several EU nations have reported a spike in "anti-Muslim hatred" and "anti-Semitism" since the start of the Gaza war, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. In May 2024, graffiti of red hands was painted beneath the wall at the memorial in central Paris honouring people who saved Jews from persecution during the 1940-44 Nazi occupation of France.
Arab News
a day ago
- General
- Arab News
Paris Holocaust memorial, synagogues hit with paint
'I am deeply disgusted by these heinous acts targeting the Jewish community,' Retailleau saidNo arrests have been madePARIS: France's Holocaust memorial, two synagogues and a restaurant in central Paris were vandalized with green paint overnight, according to police sources on Saturday, prompting condemnation from government and city officials.'I am deeply disgusted by these heinous acts targeting the Jewish community,' French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said on arrests have been last week called for 'visible and dissuasive' security measures at Jewish-linked sites amid concerns over possible anti-Semitic a separate message seen by AFP, the interior minister on Friday had again ordered heightened surveillance ahead of the upcoming Jewish Shavuot French Jewish community, one of the largest in the world, has for months been on edge in the face of a growing number of attacks and desecrations of memorials since the Gaza war erupted on October 7, 2023.'Anti-Semitic acts account for more than 60 percent of anti-religious acts, and the Jewish community is particularly vulnerable,' Retailleau said in the message seen by authorities would be lodging a complaint over the paint incident, said the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo.'I condemn these acts of intimidation in the strongest possible terms. Anti-Semitism has no place in our city or in our Republic,' she May 2024, red hand graffiti was painted beneath the wall at the memorial in central Paris honoring individuals who saved Jews from persecution during the 1940-44 Nazi occupation of France.
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Paris synagogues and Holocaust memorial smeared with paint
Two synagogues, a restaurant and part of the Holocaust memorial in Paris were attacked by vandals overnight, authorities said on Saturday while strongly denouncing the acts. The targeted sites were all smeared with green paint, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo wrote on Instagram. "I condemn this intimidation with all my might," said Hidalgo, adding that anti-Semitism has no place in Paris and that she would seek to press charges against the perpetrators of the damage. French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau wrote on X of "immense disgust at these shameful acts directed against the Jewish community."
