Denmark sentences two Swedes for Israeli embassy attack
(JNS) — A Danish court on Feb. 3 sentenced two Swedish citizens to 12 and 14 years in prison, respectively, for a 2024 grenade attack near Israel’s embassy in Copenhagen, after convicting them of terrorism and attempted murder, AFP reported.
The men, now 18 and 21, threw two grenades that damaged the terrace of a residence next to the mission in the upscale Hellerup district in the early hours of Oct. 2, 2024, but caused no injuries. They will be expelled to Sweden after serving their terms, authorities said.
“The two men threw the grenades with the intention of seriously frightening the Israeli and Danish populations — the attack therefore constitutes a terrorist act,” according to the police statement.
Judges found that the pair, who were 16 and 18 at the time, had acted together after agreeing with unidentified accomplices linked to a Swedish criminal network.
The younger defendant, whose DNA was found on one of the grenades, admitted during the trial to membership in Sweden’s Foxtrot gang.
“The criminal network acted as the armed wing of a Middle Eastern terrorist organization in Denmark, where the Israeli embassy had been designated as the target of the attack,” prosecutor Søren Harbo said in a press release.
Swedish intelligence has previously alleged that Iran sought to recruit local criminal gangs to attack Israeli targets. The Islamic Republic denies the claim.
UK jury acquits six in Elbit burglary case
(JNS) — A London court on Feb. 4 acquitted of burglary six defendants who confessed to breaking into a U.K. subsidiary of Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems in 2024.
The defendants were cleared of aggravated burglary, but they may face a retrial on additional charges of criminal damage and violent disorder. The jury reached partial or no verdicts on those counts, according to the BBC’s report of the conclusion of the trial.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews on Feb. 4 said it was “concerned” following the trial, in which prosecutors presented footage allegedly showing a break-in and at least one defendant using violence against police.
“There is a serious danger of perverse justifications being used as a shield for criminality,” the board’s statement read. “It cannot be the case that those who commit serious criminal acts, including violent assaults, are able to evade the consequences of their actions.”
Five of the defendants, whom prosecutors said were linked to the Palestine Action terrorist group, were released on bail following the burglary verdict, with a sixth remaining in custody at least until the next hearing.
The jurors found three defendants not guilty of violent disorder, though they did not deliver a verdict on the criminal damage charges. The remaining defendants may face a retrial for both additional charges, The Guardian reported.
Prominent British LGBTQ activist arrested for carrying ‘globalize the intifada’ sign in London
(JTA) — British LGBTQ activist Peter Tatchell was arrested for holding a sign with the phrase “globalize the intifada” at a pro-Palestinian march in London on Jan. 31.
Tatchell’s arrest comes weeks after the police in London announced that they would arrest pro-Palestinian protesters who chant “globalize the intifada.”
The policy change came in the wake of the attack on a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney. It followed other efforts by the British government to tighten limits on what pro-Palestinian protesters can say and do, including a ban on the activist group Palestine Action that has made any show of support illegal.
Tatchell, 74, who is known as one of England’s most prominent gay rights activists, wrote in a post on social media that he had “opposed Hamas since it was formed & opposed ALL Islamists (Iran, Hezbollah etc).” But he said the Metropolitan Police’s new policy was an overreach.
“Police are fabricating new laws. There is no legal statute that criminalises ‘intifada,’” wrote Tatchell in a post on social media decrying his arrest. “By arresting me, police seem to be reacting to pressure from a foreign regime — Israel — & Netanyahu apologists, to silence public support for Palestinians’ right to resist Israeli occupation.”
Israeli-Palestinian restaurant shutters in Berlin, though a TV show will continue its story
(JTA) — An Israeli-Palestinian restaurant in Berlin that became internationally known for its “Make hummus not war” message is closing after 10 years — but a new TV series will extend its story.
Kanaan, a hummus bar run by Oz Ben David, an Israeli, and Jalil Dabit, a Palestinian, has announced it will shutter in March. The partners evolved their restaurant into a platform for promoting peace and dialogue, but in recent years, they fought a string of economic challenges along with local tensions emanating from the Gaza war.
“Running a daily restaurant became too heavy,” they said in a post on social media. “The pandemic, the wars and the economic situation, all of those were too much.”
Now, the German production company Traumfabrik Babelsberg says it’s making a new dramedy series based on the Israeli-Palestinian duo. The show called “Breaking the Binary” was announced at a launch party in January, where the creators said they joined Ben David and Dabit over “a shared meal as a symbol of exchange and encounter.”
Ben David and Dabit are contributing to the writing and character development of the series. It will feature Mirna Funk, a German-Jewish author and journalist, as well as Yousef Sweid, a Palestinian citizen of Israel who appeared in the acclaimed Netflix series “Unorthodox” and HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”
FIFA president: Don’t ban Israel from soccer
(JNS) — FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in an interview aired on Feb. 2 that he opposes calls to bar Israel from international soccer, calling such a move “a defeat” and urging the sport to keep political doors open even amid conflicts.
Infantino told Sky News that FIFA should consider changing its statutes to “never ban any country from playing football because of the acts of their political leaders,” and argued that maintaining competition helps reduce “frustration and hatred.”
He linked his stance on Israel to broader opposition to sporting boycotts, questioning why soccer should be targeted when businesses and diplomats are not and insisting the World Cup must remain a rare space where people “meet around the passion” for the game.
