“The Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas [Gahr] Store, is setting new records of moral depravity, anti-Israel hostility, and antisemitism,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in response to the Norwegian leader’s attendance at an anti-Zionist, Kristallnacht event.
Store chose to attend the event run by the Anti-Racism Centre, a nonprofit organization that has accused Israel of genocide. It is one in a group of several organizations that receive state funding to combat antisemitism.
However, members of the Jewish community have previously told The Jerusalem Post that the center actually fuels antisemitism. Its Kristallnacht event heavily featured anti-Israel discourse and anti-Zionist rhetoric. It was also co-organized by the Palestine Committee of Norway and the local branch of Jewish Voices for Peace.
The Jewish Community of Oslo, Det Mosaiske Trossamfunn (DMT), has boycotted the Anti-Racism Centre’s Kristallnacht event for the past three years, organizing its own event instead. Store, who was encouraged by Norway’s Jewish community not to attend, went ahead with his plans anyway.
Store 'sends dangerous message that memory of Holocaust victims can be used for political gain'
“Store chose to participate in a ceremony that turned a horrific episode of the murder and persecution of Jews – the anniversary of Kristallnacht (the Night of Broken Glass) – into a weapon against the Jewish state, Israelis, and Jews,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said.
“This is an affront to the memory of the Holocaust’s victims – especially to the more than 750 Norwegian Jews who were deported and murdered by the Nazis and their local collaborators,” it continued.
“By rejecting the requests of Norway’s Jewish community and joining the event, the prime minister is sending a dangerous message that even the memory of Holocaust victims can be used for political gain, betraying his government’s pledge to fight Holocaust distortion.”
Yad Vashem’s chair, Dani Dayan, said, “I cannot recall a European leader engaging in Holocaust denigration as the Norwegian Prime Minister Store did this afternoon. He misused the anniversary of the November Pogrom (Kristallnacht) to partner with those who seek to leave the Jewish people stateless and defenseless again.”
In his speech at the ceremony, Store acknowledged that many Norwegian Jews “did not wish to be here today,” but said that as “prime minister, I want to say that my government will do everything possible to protect, support, and stand by Norway’s Jews and all.”
“Norway must be a country where one can proudly say: I am Jewish,” he said.
The DMT’s Chief Rabbi, Joav Melchior, criticized Store’s speech, noting how difficult it was to see the prime minister standing on a stage with organizations and environments that over the past two years have “taken our experiences and concerns seriously [only] to a small extent.”
While Melchior said that Store “tried to make room” for Jewish experiences, he noted that the government lacks a clear voice against the form of anti-Zionism that transitions into identity stamping and demonization practices.
“There is a difference between a sharp and legitimate criticism of Israel’s politics, and rhetoric that presents Zionism as an evil in itself, or that places anyone with a Zionist identity into the category of morally reprehensible ‘child killers,’” Melchior said.
“This climate is destroying the opportunity for conversation between people with different experiences and affiliations,” the rabbi continued. “And it affects ordinary, good people in Norway who just want to live their Jewish and Zionist lives in peace.”
“It is lamentable that an event to commemorate the Kristallnacht pogrom does not contribute to the fight against antisemitism, which is what such a commemoration should have,” DMT Rabbi Michael Kohn told the news outlet Minerva.
Anti-Racism Centre director Omar Ashraf denied that the event is antisemitic, saying Jews were welcome to attend.
The center refused to meet with the Post during an August visit.