History of the Jews in Venezuela
Encyclopedia
The History of the Jews in Venezuela dates to the middle of the 17th century, when records suggest that groups of marranos (Spanish and Portuguese descendants of baptized Jews suspected of secret adherence to Judaism
) lived in Caracas
and Maracaibo
. The Jewish community, however, did not become established in Venezuela
until the middle of the 19th century. In 2008, tensions exist between the government of Hugo Chávez
and the Jewish community, and as much as a fifth of the community has emigrated in recent years.
is the oldest Jewish cemetery in continuous use in the Americas
. Its origin can be located in the 19th century, when sephardic jews from the dutch
colony of Curaçao
began to migrate to the Venezuelan city of Santa Ana de Coro
in 1824.
and La Guaira
. By 1917, the number of Jewish citizens rose to 475, and to 882 in 1926. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Jewish community began to develop with the arrival of North African and eastern European Jews. Jewish immigration from Eastern and Central Europe increased after 1934 but, by then, Venezuela had imposed specific restrictions on Jewish immigration, which remained in effect until after the 1950s.
In 1939 the steamboats Koenigstein and Caribia left Nazi Germany
and docked in Venezuela. One Jewish refugee commented in the Venezuelan newspaper, La Esfera, "Imagine our joy at being free and far from a land in which everything threatened us with death. It is such a holy occurrence given that we were expelled from Germany and you have embraced us." By 1950, in spite of immigration restrictions, there were around 6,000 Jewish people in Venezuela. The biggest waves of immigration occurred after World War II
and the 1967 Six-Day War
, when a large influx of Sephardi Jews
from Morocco arrived and settled mostly in the capital of Caracas. The Jewish population in Venezuela peaked at 45,000, largely centered in Caracas, but with smaller concentrations in Maracaibo. Most of Venezuela's Jews are either first or second generation.
Venezuela was hospitable to Jewish life, and Jews "developed deep ties to the country and a strong sense of patriotism", acculturating and settling into a "comfortable 'live-and-let-live' rapport with the government". According to David Harris, Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee
:
said a Venezuelan journalist in the U.S., Ted Cordova-Claure, "published an article in the privately-owned, pro-democracy Tal Cual equating Sharon and Hitler
".) The Roth Institute also said that Frontera journalist Alfredo Hernandez Torres justified suicide bomb attacks against Israel, saying that "Sharon displays more hate than the Nazis had for the Jews." Torres called Sharon a "beast" and said that Israel engaged in "genocide in Jenin
... which would have embarrassed even insensitive Hitler".
The Roth Institute reported that Venezuelan newspapers El Universal and El Nacional have accused Israel of genocide, with an editorial written by Maria de los Angeles Serrano in El Nacional stating Israeli Jews "are today strangulating, deporting, placing under closure and killing the Palestinian people with the same enthusiasm as that of their persecutors, the Nazis".
The Roth Institute reported in 2002 that anti-Israel, Chávez supporters demonstrated wearing t-shirts with the inscriptions "Jerusalem will be ours" and "Israel out, solidarity with the Palestinian cause."
According to the Roth Institute, when Ultimas Noticias
interviewed Lebanese-Venezuelan politician and Fifth Republic Movement
leader Tarek William Saab and Franklin González, director of the School of International Studies at the Central University of Venezuela
, both bemoaned that the United Nations
had disappointed Palestinians, and that "the roots of the conflict lay in the creation of the State of Israel, in 1947".
In its 2004 annual report, the Roth Institute said the Sephardic Tiferet Israel Synagogue was repeatedly attacked after a government-sponsored rally on May 16 in which the slogans "Don’t allow Colombia to be the Israel of Latin America", "Sharon is a murderer of the Palestinian People", "Viva the armed Palestinian people", and "Free Palestine" were written on city walls.
The 2004 Roth Institute report noted a number of incidents, including the armed raid carried out by security forces in November on the Jewish elementary and high school in Caracas, which it described as "perhaps the most serious incident ever to have taken place in the history of the Jewish community". It also stated that "Pro-Chavez supporters were responsible for numerous antisemitic manifestations, including repeated desecrations of the Sephardic Tiferet Israel Synagogue." According to a report, the Jewish population in Venezuela had dropped below 15,000, which it claims is "a result of severe instability in the country". The Miami Herald
and Jewish Times reported emigration of Jewish people from Venezuela due to alleged concerns over anti-Semitism.
In August 2004, the United States Department of State
said some incidents of anti-Semitism occurred during the presidential recall referendum
. The pro-government newspaper VEA accused Jewish leaders of participating in the Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002
. The U.S. State Department and the Roth Institute reported graffiti with slogans like "Jews go home", were carved into synagogues after a 2004 government-sponsored rally, signed by the Communist Youth and the Communist Party of Venezuela. On August 8, 2004 Chávez supporters chanted "Sharon is a murder. No to Israel," with the letter S shaped like a swastika
. They also wrote, "Viva Chavez and Arafat
" and "NO to Zionism
".
Communist Party members posted signs saying "Neither Orlando Urdaneta
nor the super-terrorist Israelis will succeed with our people", "No to the Israeli commandos in Caracas", "No to the involvement of Israelis in our nation", "No to the Mossad and no to the CIA", and "Bush+Sharon=murderers".
The U.S. Department of State said, in its 2005 report on International Religious Freedom, that Venezuela is a "historically open society without significant anti-Semitism; however, the Government and its supporters occasionally demonstrated possible anti-Semitism".
was assassinated, "the Government used satirical comments made by journalist Orlando Urdaneta
on a U.S. television program to allude to possible Israeli participation in Anderson's killing". The Israeli Embassy denied any Israeli involvement, cautioning that the Government representations were misleading.
On November 29, 2004, at 6:30 a.m., as school children arrived at Colegio Hebraica, a Jewish grade school in Caracas, 25 members of the country's investigative police, DISIP
, broke into the school, some of them armed and hooded, and locked the doors with the children inside, to search the school as part of the Anderson investigation. After a three-hour search, the children were freed; police later said the search was "unfruitful" and government officials confirmed nothing had been found. No-one was hurt during the search.
The U.S. State Department said that newspaper accounts of rumors of Israeli involvement in Anderson's assassination might have been behind the investigation. Thor Halvorssen, writing in The Weekly Standard
, said that the judge who ordered the raid claimed that "electronic equipment, arms, explosive devices, communications equipment and documents" connected to the bombing that killed politician Danilo Anderson
were suspected of being inside the building, and that Mossad agents had been behind the bombing. According to the Stephen Roth Institute
, the search of the school was based on one anonymous phone call. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) says the transfer of weapons and explosives from Club Magnum, a shooting club, to the Jewish school had been reported, but Club Magnum was not searched. Interior Minister
Jesse Chacón
said nothing was found in the school and, along with Communications Minister Andrés Izarra, denied that the raid was meant to intimidate the Venezuelan Jewish community.
The raid was condemned by the Simon Wiesenthal Center
, calling it an "antisemitic action, which seems more like a pogrom than a legal procedure under the rule of law". The Wiesenthal Center said, "By breaking into these Jewish institutions, it was insinuated that the entire Jewish community of Venezuela was associated with this crime and suggests the collective responsibility in which every Jew is endangered." According to the Roth Institute, media analysts claimed the raid was "a way of threatening the Jewish community and was linked to the government's ties to Arab countries and radical Islamic states. In fact, at the time of the raid, Chavez was visiting Iran for discussions on oil, an interest common to both these anti-American states".
Venezuela's chief rabbi condemned the raid's "economy of intimidation", noting that "there is not a single Jewish family in Caracas that was not affected. Many of us have children in the school, grandchildren, great-grandchildren—or friends. An attack on the school is the most effective way of jolting the entire Jewish population."
secret police agency conducted a pre-dawn raid on the Hebraic Social, Cultural and Sports Center (Centro Social Cultural y Deportivo Hebraica) the day of the 2007 constitutional referendum
in which Chávez's proposed constitutional and term limit reforms were defeated. On the Tuesday following the Sunday, December 2, referendum, representatives from the CAIV published a letter saying that dozens of DISIP agents had forcibly entered the club at 12:40 a.m. on the day of the referendum, supposedly in search of weapons and drugs. According to the CAIV, the DISIP agents left after an exhaustive search, without finding any irregularities.
The CAIV emphasized that the Jewish community in Venezuela had a national presence of more than 200 years of peaceful and democratic cooperation, and said, "We denounce this new and unjustifiable act against the Venezuelan Jewish community, and we express our rejection and profound indignation." CAIV president Abraham Levy Benshimol did however acknowledge that there had not been any violence inflicted on the Jewish community in Venezuela as yet. The Latin American Jewish Congress estimated that, due to many individuals moving away to other countries, Venezuela's Jewish community had shrunk to between 12,000 and 13,000, from the estimated 22,000 people when Chávez took office in 1999.
Sources within the government have claimed that the search warrant was issued based on evidence that the owner of Globovision
, Federico Alberto Ravel, was collaborating with a plan to assassinate Hugo Chávez with the help of a businessman who was a member of the Hebraica Centre, and that weapons or information relating to the plot were in the club's buildings.
criticized President Hugo Chávez
after he compared Spain's Jose Maria Aznar
to Hitler. In late 2005, Rabbi Henri Sobel of Brazil, a World Jewish Congress
leader, also accused Chávez of anti-Semitism.
In 2004, after he overcame the referendum on his presidency, Chávez told the opposition not to let themselves "be poisoned by those wandering Jews.
Don’t let them lead you to the place they want you to be led. There are some people saying that those 40 percent [who supported his recall] are all enemies of Chavez." The next day he said on national television that "There are some − every day there are fewer − 'small leaders' [dirigencillos] who don’t lead anyone, they are more isolated every day, and wander around like the wandering Jew." The Roth Institute says that the Jewish community in Venezuela explains that the phrase 'wandering Jews' "was directed metaphorically at the leaders of the opposition parties" and is a common term in the Catholic world. Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel
explained the meaning of the term the next day, and assured Jewish community leaders that it had been used inappropriately. The U.S. State Department also mentioned that "A few days after his electoral victory, President Chavez gave a speech in which he compared the opposition to 'wandering Jews'." Writing in The Weekly Standard
, Thor Halvorssen says the United States Department of State
's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
's "Report on Global Anti-Semitism" noted that "Anti-Semitic leaflets also were available to the public in an Interior and Justice Ministry office waiting room."
The Weisenthal Center criticized as anti-Semitic statements made by Chávez during a celebration of Christmas 2005, at a rehabilitation center. Referring to the December 2005 speech, the Miami Herald said, "It's not the first time Chávez has made comments deemed anti-Semitic. In 2005, he attacked 'some minorities, the descendants of the people who crucified Christ, [who] seized the riches of the world'." Chávez stated that "[t]he world is for all of us, then, but it so happens that a minority, the descendants of the same ones that crucified Christ, the descendants of the same ones that kicked Bolívar
out of here and also crucified him in their own way over there in Santa Marta
, in Colombia
. A minority has taken possession all of the wealth of the world."
According to the JTA, Venezuelan government sources, and Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting
, Jewish leaders in Venezuela said the quote omitted the reference to Bolívar, stated that Chávez was referring to Jews, and denounced the remarks as anti-Semitic by way of his allusions to wealth. According to an article published at Forward.com, Venezuelan Jewish community leaders accused the Simon Wiesenthal Center of rushing to judgment with the anti-Semitic remarks, saying that Chávez's comments had been taken out of context, and that he was actually referring to "gentile business elites" or the "white oligarchy that has dominated the region since the colonial era".
According to Venezuelanalysis.com, Chávez denied the accusations, saying to the National Assembly
, "Anti-liberal I am, anti-imperialist even more so, but anti-Semitic, never, that's a lie. It's part of an imperialist campaign, I am sure." Chávez said he thought the attack was, "an offensive of the empire". He dismissed the accusations of the Simon Wiesenthal Center as propaganda and said he hoped that former Prime Minister Sharon would recover from his stroke. In a nationally televised speech, Chávez accused the Wiesenthal Center of working with Washington. "It's part of the imperialist campaign", Chávez said, according to the JTA. "It's part of this political battle." The Weisenthal Center's representative in Latin America replied that Chávez's mention of Christ-killers was "ambiguous at best" and that the "decision to criticize Chávez had been taken after careful consideration".
Critics point to Chávez's professional relationship with Norberto Ceresole
. Halvorssen says that, "Chavez first ran for president on a reform platform, winning in a landslide. What few understood then was that Chavez planned to revolutionize the country following a plan masterminded by his longtime friend Norberto Ceresole
, an Argentinian
writer infamous for his books denying the Holocaust and his conspiracy theories about Jewish plans to control the planet." Holocaust denier Ceresole calls the Jews of Venezuela the greatest threat to Chavismo in his Caudillo, Ejército, Pueblo (Leader, Army, People). Chávez denies receiving advice from Ceresole, who was evicted from Venezuela a few months after Chávez reached power; later, Clarin.com said that Jose Vicente Rangel
described Ceresole's book as disgusting and despicable.
An article in The Boston Globe
discussed a Jewish filmmaker who "fled the country, fearing for his life" in January 2006. According to the article, the hosts of a government television program accused him of being part of a "Zionist conspiracy against Chávez"; the next day, Chávez called for laws to block the production of films that "denigrate our revolution".
The JTA said in 2006 that Jews in Venezuela were increasingly fearful of Chávez's vehement criticism of Israel during Israel's 2006 Lebanon War with Hezbollah. They said his rhetoric was "fanning the flames of anti-Semitism", and that the recent anti-Semitic behavior was not typical for Venezuela. They indicated concern about "the government's incendiary comments about Israel and Jews". Chávez has been accused of anti-Semitism several times by organizations like the Anti-Defamation League
, which wrote to Chávez asking him to consider how his statements might affect Venezuela. The southern area director of the ADL accused Chávez of "distorting history and torturing the truth, as he has done in this case, it is a dangerous exercise which echoes classic anti-Semitic themes". The president of the Miami-based Independent Venezuelan-American Citizens said in 2006 "That's what you expect from someone who surrounds himself with the dregs of the world. He seeks out terrorists and dictators. It's predictable that he wouldn't defend a democratic country like Israel." Jewish-Venezuelan community leaders in Caracas told El Nuevo Herald that Chávez's statements have created a situation of "fear and discomfort ... The president is not the president of a single group but of Venezuelan Jews as well." The Federation of Israeli Associations of Venezuela in 2006 condemned "attempts to trivialize the Holocaust, the premeditated and systematic extermination of millions of human beings solely because they were Jews ... by comparing it with the current war actions".
The 2009 World Conference against Anti-Semitism claimed that anti-Jewish articles had been printed in the Chavez-sponsored media "an average of 45 pieces per month" during 2008 and "more than five per day" during the month-long January 2009 operation in Gaza (Operation Cast Lead).
The Wikileaks Cablegate in 2010 revealed that members of the CAIV had raised concerns with US diplomats regarding what they felt was the increasingly hostile environment created for Venezuelan by the government of President Hugo Chavez, saying they see a "dark horizon" for their community. They feared the Chavez government's growing ties with Iran, and the language chosen by Chavez to protest against Israeli policies. "While Chavez's rhetoric once clearly differentiated criticism of Israel from that of the Venezuelan Jewish community, since 2004 they believe he has merged his anti-Zionist views with anti-Semitic ones," US Political Counselor Robin D. Meyer quoted the leaders as saying.
, an armed gang consisting of 15 unidentified men broke into Tiferet Israel, the synagogue of the Israelite Association of Venezuela
, the oldest synagogue in the Venezuelan capital Caracas
and occupied the building for several hours. The gang tied and gagged security guards before destroying offices and the place where holy books were kept; it must be noted that this happened during the Jewish shabbat
. They daubed the walls with anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti that called for Jews to be expelled from the country. Venezuela's Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro
condemned the act as a "criminal act of vandalism". The Information Minister Jesse Chacón
also condemned the attack and denied it had any connection with the government. US politicians have called on the Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
to protect the country's Jews following the outbreak. Sixteen Republicans and Democrats wrote a letter demanding an "end to the intimidation and harassment of the Jewish community." In February 2009 the Venezuelan authorities arrested 11 suspects, including two associated with the synagogue, for robbery. According to the opposition daily El Universal
, the CICPC's report stated that one of ten arrested defendants, Edgar Alexander Cordero, a bodyguard for a rabbi at the synagogue and officer of the opposition-led Metropolitan police
, asked the rabbi for loan which he refused to give. Cordero decided to rob the synagogue of money, which he believed was locked in its safes. According to Interior Minister Tarek El Aissami
, anti-semitic vandalism had merely been a tactic, "First, to weaken the investigation, and second, to direct the blame toward the national government."
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
) lived in Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
and Maracaibo
Maracaibo
Maracaibo is a city and municipality located in northwestern Venezuela off the western coast of the Lake Maracaibo. It is the second-largest city in the country after the national capital Caracas and the capital of Zulia state...
. The Jewish community, however, did not become established in Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
until the middle of the 19th century. In 2008, tensions exist between the government of Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
and the Jewish community, and as much as a fifth of the community has emigrated in recent years.
19th century
The Jewish Cemetery of CoroJewish Cemetery of Coro
The Jewish Cemetery of Coro is the oldest jewish cemetery in continuous use in the Americas .-History:Its origin can be located in the 19th century, when sephardic Jews from the Dutch colony of Curaçao began to migrate to the Venezuelan city of Santa Ana de Coro in 1824. The cemetery started to...
is the oldest Jewish cemetery in continuous use in the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
. Its origin can be located in the 19th century, when sephardic jews from the dutch
Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles , also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of two groups of islands in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao , in Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast; and Sint...
colony of Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
began to migrate to the Venezuelan city of Santa Ana de Coro
Santa Ana de Coro
Coro is the capital of Falcón State and the oldest city in the west of Venezuela.-History:The city was founded on July 26, 1527 by Spanish colonists. The name "Coro" is believed to be an indigenous word meaning "wind".The city had a turbulent history in colonial times and suffered a number of...
in 1824.
20th century
In 1907, the Israelite Beneficial Society, which became the Israelite Society of Venezuela in 1919, was created as an organization to bring the Jews who were scattered throughout the country together. Jewish prayer and holiday services took place in small houses in Caracas and towns like Los TequesLos Teques
Los Teques is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of Miranda. Its population is 140,617 .-History:The city was founded in 1777 and was named after the Aractoeques Carabs, an indigenous tribe that once inhabited the area...
and La Guaira
La Guaira
La Guaira is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of Vargas and the country's chief port. It was founded in 1577 as an outlet for Caracas, to the southeast. The town and the port were badly damaged during the December 1999 floods and mudslides that affected much of the region...
. By 1917, the number of Jewish citizens rose to 475, and to 882 in 1926. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Jewish community began to develop with the arrival of North African and eastern European Jews. Jewish immigration from Eastern and Central Europe increased after 1934 but, by then, Venezuela had imposed specific restrictions on Jewish immigration, which remained in effect until after the 1950s.
In 1939 the steamboats Koenigstein and Caribia left Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
and docked in Venezuela. One Jewish refugee commented in the Venezuelan newspaper, La Esfera, "Imagine our joy at being free and far from a land in which everything threatened us with death. It is such a holy occurrence given that we were expelled from Germany and you have embraced us." By 1950, in spite of immigration restrictions, there were around 6,000 Jewish people in Venezuela. The biggest waves of immigration occurred after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the 1967 Six-Day War
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
, when a large influx of Sephardi Jews
Sephardi Jews
Sephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
from Morocco arrived and settled mostly in the capital of Caracas. The Jewish population in Venezuela peaked at 45,000, largely centered in Caracas, but with smaller concentrations in Maracaibo. Most of Venezuela's Jews are either first or second generation.
Venezuela was hospitable to Jewish life, and Jews "developed deep ties to the country and a strong sense of patriotism", acculturating and settling into a "comfortable 'live-and-let-live' rapport with the government". According to David Harris, Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee
American Jewish Committee
The American Jewish Committee was "founded in 1906 with the aim of rallying all sections of American Jewry to defend the rights of Jews all over the world...
:
- They have developed an impressive communal infrastructure built around a central umbrella organization, La Confederación de Asociaciones Israelitas de Venezuela (CAIV), with which the American Jewish CommitteeAmerican Jewish CommitteeThe American Jewish Committee was "founded in 1906 with the aim of rallying all sections of American Jewry to defend the rights of Jews all over the world...
signed an association agreement last year, fifteen synagogues (all but one Orthodox), and, perhaps most striking of all, a Jewish all-in-one campus, Hebraica. Combining Jewish nursery and day schools, a country club, cultural center, a verdant setting, and wide-ranging sports activities, Hebraica serves as the focus for much of the community.
- The results of these communal efforts speak for themselves. The community is close-knit, an overwhelming majority of Jewish children attend Jewish schools, the level of participation is high, identification with Israel is intense, and intermarriage rates are low compared to the United States or Britain.
- What is equally striking in talking with Venezuela's Jews, to the extent that generalizations are ever possible, is an obvious pride in being Venezuelan. Not only do they continue to appreciate the refuge the country provided—the Jews having come in search of safety and opportunity — but they also recognize the country's postwar record of tolerance and relative absence of anti-Semitism, as well as its support of the 1947 UN resolution calling for the establishment of a Jewish state.
21st century
David A. Harris, Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee, writes "On the whole, Jews have done well in Venezuela—and for Venezuela. They have built successful careers in a range of fields and have served as government ministers and ambassadors."Emigration
In 2007, it was reported that emigration had resulted in a drop of up to a fifth of Venezuela's 20,000 strong Jewish population amid concerns of rising allegations of antisemitism. By November 2010, more than half of Jewish Venezuelans had left the country since Chavez came to power, with some of those remaining behind complaining of "official antisemitism".Accusations of anti-Semitism
In its 2002 report, the Stephen Roth InstituteStephen Roth Institute
The Stephen Roth Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism and Racism is a research institute at Tel Aviv University in Israel. It is a resource for information, provides a forum for academic discussion, and fosters research on issues concerning antisemitic and racist theories and...
said a Venezuelan journalist in the U.S., Ted Cordova-Claure, "published an article in the privately-owned, pro-democracy Tal Cual equating Sharon and Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
".) The Roth Institute also said that Frontera journalist Alfredo Hernandez Torres justified suicide bomb attacks against Israel, saying that "Sharon displays more hate than the Nazis had for the Jews." Torres called Sharon a "beast" and said that Israel engaged in "genocide in Jenin
Jenin
Jenin is the largest town in the Northern West Bank, and the third largest city overall. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate and is a major agricultural center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, the city had a population of 120,004 not including the adjacent refugee...
... which would have embarrassed even insensitive Hitler".
The Roth Institute reported that Venezuelan newspapers El Universal and El Nacional have accused Israel of genocide, with an editorial written by Maria de los Angeles Serrano in El Nacional stating Israeli Jews "are today strangulating, deporting, placing under closure and killing the Palestinian people with the same enthusiasm as that of their persecutors, the Nazis".
The Roth Institute reported in 2002 that anti-Israel, Chávez supporters demonstrated wearing t-shirts with the inscriptions "Jerusalem will be ours" and "Israel out, solidarity with the Palestinian cause."
According to the Roth Institute, when Ultimas Noticias
Últimas Noticias
Últimas Noticias is the highest selling daily newspaper in Venezuela. It was founded in Caracas in 1941 after the pro-freedom measures implemented by President Medina Angarita.In 2008 it publishes 170,000 copies a day ....
interviewed Lebanese-Venezuelan politician and Fifth Republic Movement
Fifth Republic Movement
The Fifth Republic Movement was a left-wing, Socialist political party in Venezuela. It was founded in July 1997, following a national congress of the Revolutionary Bolivarian Movement-200, to support the candidacy of Hugo Chávez, the current President of Venezuela, in the Venezuelan presidential...
leader Tarek William Saab and Franklin González, director of the School of International Studies at the Central University of Venezuela
Central University of Venezuela
The Central University of Venezuela is a premier public University of Venezuela located in Caracas...
, both bemoaned that the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
had disappointed Palestinians, and that "the roots of the conflict lay in the creation of the State of Israel, in 1947".
In its 2004 annual report, the Roth Institute said the Sephardic Tiferet Israel Synagogue was repeatedly attacked after a government-sponsored rally on May 16 in which the slogans "Don’t allow Colombia to be the Israel of Latin America", "Sharon is a murderer of the Palestinian People", "Viva the armed Palestinian people", and "Free Palestine" were written on city walls.
The 2004 Roth Institute report noted a number of incidents, including the armed raid carried out by security forces in November on the Jewish elementary and high school in Caracas, which it described as "perhaps the most serious incident ever to have taken place in the history of the Jewish community". It also stated that "Pro-Chavez supporters were responsible for numerous antisemitic manifestations, including repeated desecrations of the Sephardic Tiferet Israel Synagogue." According to a report, the Jewish population in Venezuela had dropped below 15,000, which it claims is "a result of severe instability in the country". The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
and Jewish Times reported emigration of Jewish people from Venezuela due to alleged concerns over anti-Semitism.
In August 2004, the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
said some incidents of anti-Semitism occurred during the presidential recall referendum
Venezuelan recall referendum of 2004
The Venezuelan recall referendum of 15 August 2004 was a referendum to determine whether Hugo Chávez, the current President of Venezuela, should be recalled from office...
. The pro-government newspaper VEA accused Jewish leaders of participating in the Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002
Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002
The Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002 was a failed coup d'état on 11 April 2002 that saw President Hugo Chávez ousted from office for 47 hours, being restored by a combination of military force and mass demonstration of popular support...
. The U.S. State Department and the Roth Institute reported graffiti with slogans like "Jews go home", were carved into synagogues after a 2004 government-sponsored rally, signed by the Communist Youth and the Communist Party of Venezuela. On August 8, 2004 Chávez supporters chanted "Sharon is a murder. No to Israel," with the letter S shaped like a swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
. They also wrote, "Viva Chavez and Arafat
Arafat
Arafat is a surname or given name, and may refer to:* Yasser Arafat , Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority * Fathi Arafat , Palestinian physician...
" and "NO to Zionism
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
".
Communist Party members posted signs saying "Neither Orlando Urdaneta
Orlando Urdaneta
Orlando Urdaneta is a well-known Venezuelan actor and television personality. He is one of the most outspoken critics of President Hugo Chávez and his fear of retaliation from the Bolivarian Circles made him decide to live in a self-imposed exile in Miami...
nor the super-terrorist Israelis will succeed with our people", "No to the Israeli commandos in Caracas", "No to the involvement of Israelis in our nation", "No to the Mossad and no to the CIA", and "Bush+Sharon=murderers".
The U.S. Department of State said, in its 2005 report on International Religious Freedom, that Venezuela is a "historically open society without significant anti-Semitism; however, the Government and its supporters occasionally demonstrated possible anti-Semitism".
2004 Jewish school raid
According to the U.S. State Department, in November 2004, after Venezuelan government prosecutor Danilo AndersonDanilo Anderson
The Murder of Danilo Anderson took place on 18 November 2004, in Caracas, Venezuela. Danilo Baltasar Anderson was a Venezuelan environmental state prosecutor investigating more than 400 people accused of crimes against the state and Venezuelan people in the failed 2002 coup d'état attempt...
was assassinated, "the Government used satirical comments made by journalist Orlando Urdaneta
Orlando Urdaneta
Orlando Urdaneta is a well-known Venezuelan actor and television personality. He is one of the most outspoken critics of President Hugo Chávez and his fear of retaliation from the Bolivarian Circles made him decide to live in a self-imposed exile in Miami...
on a U.S. television program to allude to possible Israeli participation in Anderson's killing". The Israeli Embassy denied any Israeli involvement, cautioning that the Government representations were misleading.
On November 29, 2004, at 6:30 a.m., as school children arrived at Colegio Hebraica, a Jewish grade school in Caracas, 25 members of the country's investigative police, DISIP
Dirección de los Servicios de Inteligencia y Prevención
thumb|250px|right|El Helicoide building in Caracas - old headquarters of SEBINSEBIN, the Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia , is the premier intelligence agency in Venezuela...
, broke into the school, some of them armed and hooded, and locked the doors with the children inside, to search the school as part of the Anderson investigation. After a three-hour search, the children were freed; police later said the search was "unfruitful" and government officials confirmed nothing had been found. No-one was hurt during the search.
The U.S. State Department said that newspaper accounts of rumors of Israeli involvement in Anderson's assassination might have been behind the investigation. Thor Halvorssen, writing in The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
, said that the judge who ordered the raid claimed that "electronic equipment, arms, explosive devices, communications equipment and documents" connected to the bombing that killed politician Danilo Anderson
Danilo Anderson
The Murder of Danilo Anderson took place on 18 November 2004, in Caracas, Venezuela. Danilo Baltasar Anderson was a Venezuelan environmental state prosecutor investigating more than 400 people accused of crimes against the state and Venezuelan people in the failed 2002 coup d'état attempt...
were suspected of being inside the building, and that Mossad agents had been behind the bombing. According to the Stephen Roth Institute
Stephen Roth Institute
The Stephen Roth Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism and Racism is a research institute at Tel Aviv University in Israel. It is a resource for information, provides a forum for academic discussion, and fosters research on issues concerning antisemitic and racist theories and...
, the search of the school was based on one anonymous phone call. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) says the transfer of weapons and explosives from Club Magnum, a shooting club, to the Jewish school had been reported, but Club Magnum was not searched. Interior Minister
Interior minister
An interior ministry is a government ministry typically responsible for policing, national security, and immigration matters. The ministry is often headed by a minister of the interior or minister of home affairs...
Jesse Chacón
Jesse Chacón
Jesse Alonso Chacón Escamillo was Venezuelan Minister of Interior and Justice from September 2004 to January 2007, under the presidency of Hugo Chávez. He had been a close ally of Chávez since 1990 or earlier...
said nothing was found in the school and, along with Communications Minister Andrés Izarra, denied that the raid was meant to intimidate the Venezuelan Jewish community.
The raid was condemned by the Simon Wiesenthal Center
Simon Wiesenthal Center
The Simon Wiesenthal Center , with headquarters in Los Angeles, California, was established in 1977 and named for Simon Wiesenthal, the Nazi hunter. According to its mission statement, it is "an international Jewish human rights organization dedicated to repairing the world one step at a time...
, calling it an "antisemitic action, which seems more like a pogrom than a legal procedure under the rule of law". The Wiesenthal Center said, "By breaking into these Jewish institutions, it was insinuated that the entire Jewish community of Venezuela was associated with this crime and suggests the collective responsibility in which every Jew is endangered." According to the Roth Institute, media analysts claimed the raid was "a way of threatening the Jewish community and was linked to the government's ties to Arab countries and radical Islamic states. In fact, at the time of the raid, Chavez was visiting Iran for discussions on oil, an interest common to both these anti-American states".
Venezuela's chief rabbi condemned the raid's "economy of intimidation", noting that "there is not a single Jewish family in Caracas that was not affected. Many of us have children in the school, grandchildren, great-grandchildren—or friends. An attack on the school is the most effective way of jolting the entire Jewish population."
2007 Jewish club raid
According to the Venezuelan Confederation of Israelite Associations (CAIV, Confederación de Asociaciones Israelitas de Venezuela), agents of the DISIPDirección de los Servicios de Inteligencia y Prevención
thumb|250px|right|El Helicoide building in Caracas - old headquarters of SEBINSEBIN, the Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia , is the premier intelligence agency in Venezuela...
secret police agency conducted a pre-dawn raid on the Hebraic Social, Cultural and Sports Center (Centro Social Cultural y Deportivo Hebraica) the day of the 2007 constitutional referendum
Venezuelan constitutional referendum, 2007
A constitutional referendum was held in Venezuela on 2 December 2007 to amend 69 articles of the 1999 Constitution. Reform was needed, according to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, to implement his socialist agenda; detractors said he was using the reforms to become a dictator.The referendum was...
in which Chávez's proposed constitutional and term limit reforms were defeated. On the Tuesday following the Sunday, December 2, referendum, representatives from the CAIV published a letter saying that dozens of DISIP agents had forcibly entered the club at 12:40 a.m. on the day of the referendum, supposedly in search of weapons and drugs. According to the CAIV, the DISIP agents left after an exhaustive search, without finding any irregularities.
The CAIV emphasized that the Jewish community in Venezuela had a national presence of more than 200 years of peaceful and democratic cooperation, and said, "We denounce this new and unjustifiable act against the Venezuelan Jewish community, and we express our rejection and profound indignation." CAIV president Abraham Levy Benshimol did however acknowledge that there had not been any violence inflicted on the Jewish community in Venezuela as yet. The Latin American Jewish Congress estimated that, due to many individuals moving away to other countries, Venezuela's Jewish community had shrunk to between 12,000 and 13,000, from the estimated 22,000 people when Chávez took office in 1999.
Sources within the government have claimed that the search warrant was issued based on evidence that the owner of Globovision
Globovisión
Globovisión is a 24-hour television news network in Venezuela. It broadcasts over-the-air in Caracas, Aragua, Carabobo and Zulia on UHF channel 33. Globovisión is seen in the rest of Venezuela on cable or satellite and worldwide from their website...
, Federico Alberto Ravel, was collaborating with a plan to assassinate Hugo Chávez with the help of a businessman who was a member of the Hebraica Centre, and that weapons or information relating to the plot were in the club's buildings.
Accusations of Chávez anti-Semitism
The Simon Wiesenthal CenterSimon Wiesenthal Center
The Simon Wiesenthal Center , with headquarters in Los Angeles, California, was established in 1977 and named for Simon Wiesenthal, the Nazi hunter. According to its mission statement, it is "an international Jewish human rights organization dedicated to repairing the world one step at a time...
criticized President Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
after he compared Spain's Jose Maria Aznar
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López served as the Prime Minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He is on the board of directors of News Corporation.-Early life:...
to Hitler. In late 2005, Rabbi Henri Sobel of Brazil, a World Jewish Congress
World Jewish Congress
The World Jewish Congress was founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in August 1936 as an international federation of Jewish communities and organizations...
leader, also accused Chávez of anti-Semitism.
In 2004, after he overcame the referendum on his presidency, Chávez told the opposition not to let themselves "be poisoned by those wandering Jews.
Wandering Jew
The Wandering Jew is a figure from medieval Christian folklore whose legend began to spread in Europe in the 13th century. The original legend concerns a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion and was then cursed to walk the earth until the Second Coming...
Don’t let them lead you to the place they want you to be led. There are some people saying that those 40 percent [who supported his recall] are all enemies of Chavez." The next day he said on national television that "There are some − every day there are fewer − 'small leaders' [dirigencillos] who don’t lead anyone, they are more isolated every day, and wander around like the wandering Jew." The Roth Institute says that the Jewish community in Venezuela explains that the phrase 'wandering Jews' "was directed metaphorically at the leaders of the opposition parties" and is a common term in the Catholic world. Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel
José Vicente Rangel
José Vicente Rangel Vale is a Venezuelan leftist politician. He ran for President three times in the 1970s and 1980s and later supported Hugo Chávez, successively becoming Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, and Vice President in Chávez's government.-Political activism:His political activism began...
explained the meaning of the term the next day, and assured Jewish community leaders that it had been used inappropriately. The U.S. State Department also mentioned that "A few days after his electoral victory, President Chavez gave a speech in which he compared the opposition to 'wandering Jews'." Writing in The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
, Thor Halvorssen says the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Affairs at the United States Department of State is one of three bureaus and two offices that constitute the Office of the Under Secretary for Global Affairs...
's "Report on Global Anti-Semitism" noted that "Anti-Semitic leaflets also were available to the public in an Interior and Justice Ministry office waiting room."
The Weisenthal Center criticized as anti-Semitic statements made by Chávez during a celebration of Christmas 2005, at a rehabilitation center. Referring to the December 2005 speech, the Miami Herald said, "It's not the first time Chávez has made comments deemed anti-Semitic. In 2005, he attacked 'some minorities, the descendants of the people who crucified Christ, [who] seized the riches of the world'." Chávez stated that "[t]he world is for all of us, then, but it so happens that a minority, the descendants of the same ones that crucified Christ, the descendants of the same ones that kicked Bolívar
Simón Bolívar
Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...
out of here and also crucified him in their own way over there in Santa Marta
Santa Marta
Santa Marta is the capital city of the Colombian department of Magdalena in the Caribbean Region. It was founded in July 29, 1525 by the Spanish conqueror Rodrigo de Bastidas, which makes it the oldest remaining city in Colombia...
, in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. A minority has taken possession all of the wealth of the world."
According to the JTA, Venezuelan government sources, and Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting
Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting
Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting is a progressive media criticism organization based in New York City, founded in 1986.FAIR describes itself on its website as "the national media watch group" and defines its mission as working to "invigorate the First Amendment by advocating for greater diversity...
, Jewish leaders in Venezuela said the quote omitted the reference to Bolívar, stated that Chávez was referring to Jews, and denounced the remarks as anti-Semitic by way of his allusions to wealth. According to an article published at Forward.com, Venezuelan Jewish community leaders accused the Simon Wiesenthal Center of rushing to judgment with the anti-Semitic remarks, saying that Chávez's comments had been taken out of context, and that he was actually referring to "gentile business elites" or the "white oligarchy that has dominated the region since the colonial era".
According to Venezuelanalysis.com, Chávez denied the accusations, saying to the National Assembly
National Assembly of Venezuela
The National Assembly is the legislative branch of the Venezuelan government. It is a unicameral body made up of a variable number of members, who are elected by "universal, direct, personal, and secret" vote partly by direct election in state-based voting districts, and partly on a state-based...
, "Anti-liberal I am, anti-imperialist even more so, but anti-Semitic, never, that's a lie. It's part of an imperialist campaign, I am sure." Chávez said he thought the attack was, "an offensive of the empire". He dismissed the accusations of the Simon Wiesenthal Center as propaganda and said he hoped that former Prime Minister Sharon would recover from his stroke. In a nationally televised speech, Chávez accused the Wiesenthal Center of working with Washington. "It's part of the imperialist campaign", Chávez said, according to the JTA. "It's part of this political battle." The Weisenthal Center's representative in Latin America replied that Chávez's mention of Christ-killers was "ambiguous at best" and that the "decision to criticize Chávez had been taken after careful consideration".
Critics point to Chávez's professional relationship with Norberto Ceresole
Norberto Ceresole
Norberto Rafael Ceresole was an Argentine sociologist and political scientist, who identified himself with Peronism, left-wing militias and the ideas of his friends Robert Faurisson, Roger Garaudy and Ernst Nolte...
. Halvorssen says that, "Chavez first ran for president on a reform platform, winning in a landslide. What few understood then was that Chavez planned to revolutionize the country following a plan masterminded by his longtime friend Norberto Ceresole
Norberto Ceresole
Norberto Rafael Ceresole was an Argentine sociologist and political scientist, who identified himself with Peronism, left-wing militias and the ideas of his friends Robert Faurisson, Roger Garaudy and Ernst Nolte...
, an Argentinian
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
writer infamous for his books denying the Holocaust and his conspiracy theories about Jewish plans to control the planet." Holocaust denier Ceresole calls the Jews of Venezuela the greatest threat to Chavismo in his Caudillo, Ejército, Pueblo (Leader, Army, People). Chávez denies receiving advice from Ceresole, who was evicted from Venezuela a few months after Chávez reached power; later, Clarin.com said that Jose Vicente Rangel
José Vicente Rangel
José Vicente Rangel Vale is a Venezuelan leftist politician. He ran for President three times in the 1970s and 1980s and later supported Hugo Chávez, successively becoming Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, and Vice President in Chávez's government.-Political activism:His political activism began...
described Ceresole's book as disgusting and despicable.
An article in The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
discussed a Jewish filmmaker who "fled the country, fearing for his life" in January 2006. According to the article, the hosts of a government television program accused him of being part of a "Zionist conspiracy against Chávez"; the next day, Chávez called for laws to block the production of films that "denigrate our revolution".
The JTA said in 2006 that Jews in Venezuela were increasingly fearful of Chávez's vehement criticism of Israel during Israel's 2006 Lebanon War with Hezbollah. They said his rhetoric was "fanning the flames of anti-Semitism", and that the recent anti-Semitic behavior was not typical for Venezuela. They indicated concern about "the government's incendiary comments about Israel and Jews". Chávez has been accused of anti-Semitism several times by organizations like the Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
, which wrote to Chávez asking him to consider how his statements might affect Venezuela. The southern area director of the ADL accused Chávez of "distorting history and torturing the truth, as he has done in this case, it is a dangerous exercise which echoes classic anti-Semitic themes". The president of the Miami-based Independent Venezuelan-American Citizens said in 2006 "That's what you expect from someone who surrounds himself with the dregs of the world. He seeks out terrorists and dictators. It's predictable that he wouldn't defend a democratic country like Israel." Jewish-Venezuelan community leaders in Caracas told El Nuevo Herald that Chávez's statements have created a situation of "fear and discomfort ... The president is not the president of a single group but of Venezuelan Jews as well." The Federation of Israeli Associations of Venezuela in 2006 condemned "attempts to trivialize the Holocaust, the premeditated and systematic extermination of millions of human beings solely because they were Jews ... by comparing it with the current war actions".
The 2009 World Conference against Anti-Semitism claimed that anti-Jewish articles had been printed in the Chavez-sponsored media "an average of 45 pieces per month" during 2008 and "more than five per day" during the month-long January 2009 operation in Gaza (Operation Cast Lead).
The Wikileaks Cablegate in 2010 revealed that members of the CAIV had raised concerns with US diplomats regarding what they felt was the increasingly hostile environment created for Venezuelan by the government of President Hugo Chavez, saying they see a "dark horizon" for their community. They feared the Chavez government's growing ties with Iran, and the language chosen by Chavez to protest against Israeli policies. "While Chavez's rhetoric once clearly differentiated criticism of Israel from that of the Venezuelan Jewish community, since 2004 they believe he has merged his anti-Zionist views with anti-Semitic ones," US Political Counselor Robin D. Meyer quoted the leaders as saying.
2009 attack on synagogue
During the night of January 31, 2009, following Israel's incursion into GazaGaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
, an armed gang consisting of 15 unidentified men broke into Tiferet Israel, the synagogue of the Israelite Association of Venezuela
Israelite Association of Venezuela
The Israelite Association of Venezuela, , known as Tiferet Israel, founded in the 1920's by Sephardic Jews, is the oldest surviving Jewish organization in Venezuela...
, the oldest synagogue in the Venezuelan capital Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
and occupied the building for several hours. The gang tied and gagged security guards before destroying offices and the place where holy books were kept; it must be noted that this happened during the Jewish shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
. They daubed the walls with anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti that called for Jews to be expelled from the country. Venezuela's Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros is a Venezuelan politician who was appointed foreign minister by President Hugo Chávez on 9 August 2006.- Biography :...
condemned the act as a "criminal act of vandalism". The Information Minister Jesse Chacón
Jesse Chacón
Jesse Alonso Chacón Escamillo was Venezuelan Minister of Interior and Justice from September 2004 to January 2007, under the presidency of Hugo Chávez. He had been a close ally of Chávez since 1990 or earlier...
also condemned the attack and denied it had any connection with the government. US politicians have called on the Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
to protect the country's Jews following the outbreak. Sixteen Republicans and Democrats wrote a letter demanding an "end to the intimidation and harassment of the Jewish community." In February 2009 the Venezuelan authorities arrested 11 suspects, including two associated with the synagogue, for robbery. According to the opposition daily El Universal
El Universal (Caracas)
El Universal is a major Venezuelan newspaper, headquartered in Caracas with an average daily circulation of about 150,000. The online version carries news, politics, sports, economy and more....
, the CICPC's report stated that one of ten arrested defendants, Edgar Alexander Cordero, a bodyguard for a rabbi at the synagogue and officer of the opposition-led Metropolitan police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
, asked the rabbi for loan which he refused to give. Cordero decided to rob the synagogue of money, which he believed was locked in its safes. According to Interior Minister Tarek El Aissami
Tarek El Aissami
Tarek El Aissami is a Venezuelan politician. As of 2009, he is the interior minister and justice minister of Venezuela. He was previously deputy minister in the same ministry, and a member of the National Assembly of Venezuela.-References:...
, anti-semitic vandalism had merely been a tactic, "First, to weaken the investigation, and second, to direct the blame toward the national government."
Synagogue bombing
Late on the evening of Feb. 26, 2009, a homemade bomb was thrown into the Orthodox Beit Shmuel in Caracas. Whilst there were no injuries, damage was caused to windows and a car.External links
- Venezuelanalysis, 4 September 2009, Playing the ‘Anti-Semitism’ Card Against Venezuela