So, after the terrorist attack on a seminar on free speech in Copenhagen came a terrorist attack on a Jewish target there - just like in Paris - probably by the same man (now shot dead after opening fire on police).
According to the BBC News website though, "It was not immediately clear whether or how the shootings may have been connected.", Hmm.
The Daily Mail is less circumspect: Free speech and Jews under attack again: Major manhunt in Copenhagen after two men are killed and five wounded in 'jihadi' gun assaults on blasphemy discussion then synagogue in chilling echo of Paris terror.
The equivalent Sky News website article divides its coverage of the attacks between the attack on the synagogue and the seminar, including reaction from the Danish Jewish community. The BBC article, in contrast, gives over only a small proportion of its article to attack on the synagogue.
The BBC article, however, tells us that the gunman shot overnight comes from the district of Norrebro, which is (in the BBC's words) "a predominantly immigrant district of Copenhagen". It doesn't go into details. The district has its own Wikipedia entry though, which tells us:
The largest minority groups of people living in Nørrebro are Arabs, Turks, Pakistanis, Bosnians, Somalians and Albanians.
In other words, predominantly Muslim immigrants.
Malcolm Brabant is an interesting character. I heard him on BBC World service this morning talking about the pre-existing antisemitism in Denmark. He reported on it last August see here.
ReplyDeletehttps://audioboom.com/boos/2432589-reaching-across-the-divide-to-stop-rising-anti-semitism-in-denmark
Brabant became seriously ill after apparently being vaccinated against (I think) yellow fever, which set off an acute form of psychosis, for which he was hospitalised and unable to work for some considerable time.
Now he’s back at the BBC. He has a good radio voice. I couldn’t tell from these reports if he shares the BBC’s default loathing of Israel. I do hope not.
To be fair, Paddy O'Connell did a good job of reporting this on 'Broadcasting House'. He described the seminar as being about free speech. He didn't describe the Swedish cartoonist as "controversial". He interviewed a Jewish student from Britain who was at the synagogue, and a Danish Jewish leader (Dan Rosenberg Asmussen). He asked them to describe what happened and asked Mr Asmussen for his take on the great uncertainty and fear for Jews in parts of Europe.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0520t2p
On the World this Weekend Mark Mardell twice asked interviewees whether they thought that having the meeting was likely to cause offence. Think about the mental proceeds that gave rise to such a question. A meeting in a European country discussing free speech .... and there are those that now consider whether even that might be going too far. By even floating the question as though it was perfectly reasonable, the debate can now begin to be developed until we reach the point where it will become legitimate to claim that meetings are themselves offensive.
ReplyDeleteWell done Paddy.
ReplyDeleteMark down Mark Mardell.
The BBC only believe in free speech for themselves.
ReplyDelete