11 February 2008
Italian police are investigating an anti-Semitic blog listing the names of more than 150 allegedly "Jewish university professors". The list was removed from the internet last week following protests from politicians and Jewish leaders. The blog, posted by an anonymous author, listed the names and workplaces of university professors which it accused of "publicly and politically" supporting Israel. Interior minister Giuliano Amato ordered police to investigate the case.
"The Internet has become the main tool for spreading anti-Semitic hatred," said Alessandro Ruben of the Italian Jewish umbrella organization. Education minister Giuseppe Fioroni called the blog a shameful "kind of Ku-Klux-Klan of the digital age." The blog had links to far-right websites and themes like Holocaust revisionism, appeals to boycott Israel and war-time fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. Some professors listed on the blog are not Jewish but had signed pro-Israel petitions.
Elsewhere, there was a heated debate earlier this month on whether Italy's biggest book fair had a right to invite top Israeli writers as special guests. The annual Turin fair, which this year will run from 08-12 May, invited Amos Oz, David Grossman and Abraham Yehousha to mark Israel's 60th anniversary. The decision sparked protests and some called for a boycott of the event.
