"In an interview with Kathpress, an Austrian Catholic news agency, Michal Govrin, a Tel Aviv-based author and theatre director, said that as she and another woman entered the square a Swiss Guard noticeably hissed at us with deep contempt, les juifs (the Jews). When the guard was challenged, she added, he allegedly made an act of spitting in our direction with clear contempt."
"On Monday, Cpl Eliah Cinotti, a spokesperson for the Swiss Guards, said the guard had been placed under internal investigation as is standard procedure in order to be sure of the professionalism of the guards in service. It is understood that the alleged incident arose when a person asked for a photo[of the Swiss Guard], and it all started from there, Cinotti added. But to be clear the Swiss Guard completely distances itself from any form of antisemitism, Cinotti said."
"During the audience Pope Leo, who was elected in May after the death of Pope Francis, said it should not be forgotten that the first focus of the Nostra aetate was towards the Jewish world. Among other issues, the 1965 document repudiated the centuries-old charge that Jews as a whole were responsible for the death of Christ. The Catholic church, added Leo, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of antisemitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone."
On 29 October at a side entrance to St Peter's Square a Swiss Guard allegedly hissed "les juifs" and made a spitting gesture toward two Jewish women attending a general audience. The women were part of a Jewish delegation marking the 60th anniversary of Nostra aetate. Michal Govrin and Vivian Liska reported the incident; Govrin described the hiss and the alleged spitting with contempt. Cpl Eliah Cinotti confirmed the guard was placed under an internal investigation and said the Swiss Guard distances itself from antisemitism. Pope Leo emphasised Nostra aetate's focus on the Jewish world and condemned antisemitism.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]