A debate on Zionism planned by a Brussels branch of the Belgian Socialist Party (PS), was canceled Monday after an anti-Semitic cartoon used to invite people to the event caused outrage. The cartoon was drawn by Zéon, whom some local Jewish leaders have accused of being a Holocaust revisionist. It depicts a Jew dominating the world.
The event entitled ‘And if we talked freely and seriously about Zionism’ was to be hosted by the Molenbeek chapter of the Parti socialiste. The PS is one of the main government parties in Belgium and has the Belgian prime minister and the governors of Brussels and Wallonia among its ranks. Molenbeek is one of the 20 municipalities of Brussels Capital Region. It has a large Muslim population.
Among the speakers of the planned event were to be the long-time mayor of Molenbeek and Belgian Senator Philippe Moureaux and Yves Goldstein, head of Cabinet of Socialist Deputy Prime Minister Laurette Onkelinx. A PS official told a Belgian newspaper that ‘the cartoon could be misinterpreted as it wasn’t put in context or a historical framework.”
