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A desecrated Jewish tombstone (file)
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| By Israel Insider staff August 7, 2007 |
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Israel's ambassador to Poland David Peleg has recently expressed anger over the anti-Semitic rhetoric of one of Poland's most influential priests, Father Tadeusz Rydzyk, founder of Poland's Catholic, nationalist Radio Maryja. The station has between 1.5 and 2.5 million listeners a day.
On his radio show, the priest called Jews greedy and too powerful. Rydzyk was talking about a about a meeting with Polish President Lech Kaczynski, during which they discussed Holocaust property restitution, according to the Jerusalem Post.
"You know what this is about: Poland giving [the Jews] $65 billion. They will come to you and say, 'Give me your coat! Take off your trousers! Give me your shoes!'", Ryzdzyk is quoted as saying.
"Rydzyk also accuses the president of being a cheat and serving Jewish interests," due to Kaczynski's support of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews slated to open in 2009, said Peleg, "and accused a Polish newspaper of having 'Talmudic ethics.'"
Even more angering, Peleg said, is the Polish government's unwillingness to publicly address the problem. He speculates that the government chooses to turn a blind eye because of the priest's political clout.
"The Polish government sends people to tell us behind closed doors that they're against these [statements]," the official said. "But when it comes to anti-Semitism, we can't compromise; it's not a negotiable political issue. We're demanding a public statement from the government."
"[Rydzyk] attacks everything Jewish - a Jewish theater, a Jewish movie festival, a Jewish museum. It's not the first time we've seen this, but here it got a more public demonstration," Peleg added.
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