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Friday February 29, 2008

Shorts: World

Photo published of Anne Frank’s crush

A British newspaper has published what it calls the first known photograph of Peter Schiff, a boy Anne Frank fell in love with and wrote about in her diary.

At age 11, Frank fell in love with Schiff and later, while in hiding in Amsterdam, wrote about how much she missed him.

Last week the Observer newspaper reported that Ernst Michaelis, 81, of London, found a photo of Schiff in a family collection after realizing that Frank was writing about a boy he had known. Michaelis said he has had the photo authenticated, which will be displayed on the Anne Frank House Web site.

Schiff also is believed to have died in a Nazi prison camp. — ap

New charges in embassy attack

Seven men face new charges after being released from jail earlier this month for lack of evidence linking them to an attack on the Israeli Embassy in Mauritania, a judge said Feb. 24.

Judge Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Talhata said the five Mauritanians and two Tunisians have been charged with “participating in an organization whose aim is to carry out terrorist acts.”

The men were released two weeks after their arrest in the shooting at the embassy and a neighboring disco Feb. 1 that injured three people. — ap

E.U. tells Israel to end blockade

The European Union’s parliament urged Israel to open its borders with the Gaza Strip.

“The policy of isolation of the Gaza Strip has failed at both the political and humanitarian level,” said the nonbinding resolution adopted last week. “The civilian population should be exempt from any military action and any collective punishment.”

The parliament’s resolution also called on Israel to end assassinations of Hamas leaders and on Hamas to end rocket fire. — jta

Polish rabbis restart prewar organization

Poland’s Jewish leaders have relaunched the first nationwide rabbinical association since World War II, the country’s chief Orthodox rabbi said this week.

The seven Orthodox rabbis who serve in Poland gathered in the central city of Lodz over the weekend and agreed to re-form the Rabbinical Association of Poland, which thrived before World War II, the nation’s chief Orthodox rabbi said.

“The re-creation of the organization that existed before the war is simply a reflection of the reality that we now have several rabbis working in Poland,” said Michael Schudrich, who is originally from New York. — ap

Soccer coach receives threat

British police are investigating a death threat against the Israeli coach of the Chelsea soccer club.

Scotland Yard said last week that Avram Grant, who took over as coach of Chelsea last year, had received a package containing a white power and a threatening note.

The powder prompted an anthrax scare but proved to be harmless, police said. — jta

Stipend offered to have babies

At a news conference marking its 10th anniversary, the Chabad-led Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia announced it will subsidize Jewish families who have three or more children.

“Our goal for the next decade is to create a stronger community of young people and families,” the group’s chairman, Alexander Boroda, said. “This additional money is sometimes what a young family needs to have another child.”

The federation’s stipend will be about $100 per month and is intended to boost Jewish community involvement. — jta

Hungarian law bans hate speech

The Hungarian parliament passed a law against hate speech last week.

According to the new law, the use of hate speech is punishable by up to two years in prison. The law, however, may not survive legal challenges.

“Offending someone publicly who belongs to ethnic, religious or national groups in Hungary is regarded as a punishable act,” said a statement about the new law.

The proposal, which was prepared and pushed through by the ruling Socialist Party, is designed to punish not only hate speech and expressions, but also use of the Nazi salute. The latter is apparently directed at the newly organized Hungarian racist and fascist group, the Hungarian Guards. — jta

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