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ISRAEL HELD AN emotional funeral today for four Jews killed by an Islamist gunman in Paris, with thousands turning out to mourn the victims of an attack that shook the Jewish community.
Shock and sorrow was palpable in the crowd as family members and top Israeli officials stood to pay tribute to the four men who were shot dead on Friday when an Islamic extremist stormed a kosher supermarket.
Bloodshed
Tearful mourners held placards bearing portraits of Tunisian national Yoav Hattab, 21, along with French citizens Philippe Braham, 45, Yohan Cohen, 20, and Francois-Michel Saada, 63, with the words: “I am dead because I’m Jewish.”
The four were among 17 people gunned down in Paris during three days of bloodshed that began with a grisly attack on the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, in violence that convulsed France and sent shock waves through its Jewish community, the third-largest in the world.
The bodies of the four Jews were flown to Israel early today and laid out in shrouds in front of an Israeli national flag for the funeral. Afterwards they were buried in a more private ceremony at the Givat Shaul cemetery.
Yohan Cohen, 20
In the days before his death, Cohen joined millions of other Facebook users in posting “Je suis Charlie” (I am Charlie) on his page, in homage to the 12 people killed in Wednesday’s attack by jihadists on satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.
Two days after that strike, Cohen was among those killed in the assault on the kosher supermarket, where he had worked for about a year. According to the daily Le Parisien, Cohen had taken a gap year to earn money to finance his studies.
Born in October 1994, Cohen lived in the Paris suburb of Sarcelles — known locally as “Little Jerusalem” — which was rocked by anti-Semitic violence last July.
A fan of rap and a basketball player, Cohen was the grandson of Jewish Tunisian singer Doukha, who died in December. His Algerian father and his Tunisian mother settled in Sarcelles in the 1960s.
Yoav Hattab, 21
A Tunisian student pursuing his education in Paris, Hattab was sent to France by his parents on the belief that life for a Jew would be safer here than in Tunis.
Instead, Hattab was killed while trying to wrest control of one of the hostage-taker’s weapons during the siege.
One of seven children born to the rabbi of the Great Synagogue in Tunis and headmaster of the city’s Jewish school, Hattab lived with his aunt in Paris, where he arrived less than a year ago.
His family is no stranger to loss: in 1985 a Tunisian soldier opened fire at the Ghriba synagogue in Djerba killing five people, including the sister of Hattab’s mother, who was 17.
Francois-Michel Saada, 63
Born in Tunis, Saada was a retired senior manager, and a father of two, both of whom live in Israel.
Saada had planned on visiting Venice this week to celebrate his wife’s 60th birthday.
“He was an extremely upright man, who led his life for the happiness of his family, who never made a fuss. An exemplary husband and dad,” one of his friends said.
Philippe Braham, 45
Braham was an advertising manager at a computer consultancy.
A practising Jew who attended the Cachin synagogue south of Paris, his children attended a Jewish school in another southern Parisian suburb, Montrouge, where Coulibaly killed a policewoman a day before launching his strike on the supermarket.
Braham is the brother of the rabbi of Paris’s Pantin synagogue, and is described by a friend as “someone who was dedicated, always ready to help others.”
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Sad
Sad. but more or less sad than those killed by extremists in Nigeria. I guess a first world life is worth more media exposure……….
Thats all over the news too. People tend to focus on things closer to home, which kind of makes a bit of sense. Maybe you should drop the sensor settings on your racism radar down a notch or two.
Never heard of the Developed World being classified as a Race before, we must have gone to different schools……
Very sad, no wonder so many Jews are emigrating to Israel, even with the 3rd highest population of Jews in the world. It will no doubt continue after this terrorist attack. The virulent anti semitism of French society that peaked during the terrible WW2 Vichy collaboration receded, only to be replaced more recently by the Islamic extremist version.
Interesting to see the selective condemnation of the Charlie Hebdo attack from Hamas, yet only silence from them about the attack on the Kosher shop.
And Hamas’s belated condemnation of the Charlie attack came only after its newspaper Al-Risala’s Facebook page had lauded “the heroic actions of the three freedom fighters”. Needless to say, that post was subsequently removed.
Unfortunate and very sad there should be no murder no matter who you are. Unfortunatly, now lebanon will suffer even more with the exidus from france.
@Jurgen
French Jewry know that Hollande and socialists get 93% of muslim vote to keep him in power and that comes with a price.
Ex. Netanya not invited to Paris but when decided to go anyways Hollande quickly sent an invite to Mahmoud Abass and put him in front row with world leaders. However, Netanya wasn’t gonna let gurriers like Hollande and Abass get one over on him and so elbowed his way to the front row. Look at the foto again and see who stands out as the most respectable and trustworthy-looking of the lot.
We have no say what religion we were born into.
Paddy your full of poo
@PaddyOConnor, Not sure what reports you read wherever you are Paddy, but think there’s a few bits they left out. Here’s what the Irish Times reported as follows:
“Israeli media reported that the Elysee palace had conveyed an explicit message to Jerusalem that they did not want Mr Netanyahu or Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to attend Sunday’s rally because they wanted the focus to be on French unity.
Mr Netanyahu, in the middle of an election campaign, originally agreed but then changed his mind when he realised that Mr Lieberman and economy minister Naftali Bennet, both leaders of rival right-wing parties, were travelling to Paris.
Once at the rally, Mr Netanyahu, allocated a place in the second row of world leaders, allegedly forced himself to the front of the march.
Yair Lapid, leader of the Yesh Atid party, said Mr Netanyahu’s behaviour showed the world “the impolite Israeli, the pushy Israeli, and that is unfortunate.”
@Yippie dee.- Not impolite just normal macho response to attempted slight by a pair of jerks.
Did the Irish Times print the Mo cartoon?
As you know what politicians say in an election campaign is to be taken with a grain of salt.
If what Netanya’s opposition says is true, that he’s a boor, then he’ll lose votes but the Israeli press,in general, is very positive about his behaviour in Paris. Good Luck to Netanya….
@PaddyOConnor, Re: Mo cartoon question, I couldn’t tell you I don’t work for the IT.
“The Israeli press, in general, is very positive about his behaviour in Paris.”
Oh I’d say they are.
By the by, you seen the pictures of the murdered Palestinian journalists by any chance?
Sure you couldn’t miss them, vests with word “Press” clearly marked across their chests and backs.
I wonder did the Israeli press publish them.
@Yippy et al- For your info see both entries below-
Latest Analysis and Commentary
Open Letter to the French President
by A Palestinian Journalist in Ramallah • January 14, 2015 at 5:00 am
Your Excellency, many Palestinians nearly fell off their chairs upon seeing their president march at the front row of a rally in your capital to protest against terrorism and assaults on freedom of the media.
Undoubtedly, you are unaware of the fact that President Abbas is personally responsible for punishing Palestinian journalists who dare to criticize him or express their views in public. Every day we see that the Western media, including French newspapers and magazines, does not care about such violations UNLESS THEY ARE COMMITTED BY ISRAEL.
Your Excellency, you are completely mistaken if you believe that Abbas and his Palestinian Authority are tolerant toward satire or any form of criticism. While he was attending the rally, a human rights group published a report accusing the Palestinian Authority of “waging war” against university students in the West Bank.
President Abbas has managed once again to deceive you and the rest of the international community. He now has managed to create the false impression that he cares about freedom of speech and independent journalism
Palestinians like me will now pay a heaver price because Abbas has been emboldened and will now step up his assaults. France will be helping to establish another corrupt and repressive Arab dictatorship — one that glorifies and rewards terrorists no different from those who carried out the Paris attacks.
I hope now your Excellency understands why I am too scared to reveal my identity
From Gatestone Institute- today.
And from Wiki
Freedom of the press[edit]
As of 2006, sixteen Palestinian journalists have been killed or wounded by PA security forces or armed groups.[15]
Abdullah Issa, Palestinian publisher and editor of the on-line magazine Donia al Watan was detained in July 2006 by the Palestinian Authority for publishing a story about the theft of $400,000 from PA Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar while visiting Kuwait. The story cast aspersions on Hamas for having large amounts of cash while the Palestinian people were suffering from poverty. This story had appeared elsewhere in the Arabic media. Issa, accused Zahar and Hamas of interfering with freedom of the press in the Palestinian territories and expressed disappointment with Hamas’s failure to reign in corruption as promised in their election platform: “Our people have the right to hold Hamas accountable for the deterioration in their living conditions,…We were hoping that the Hamas government would start chasing and arresting all the murderers and thugs who continue to roam the streets of the Gaza Strip and to open all the cases of financial corruption.” Donia al Watan’s offices have been attacked by masked gunmen and there have been death threats against Issa and staff.[16]
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades has been blamed for a number of attacks on journalists in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the Arab television station Al-Arabiya’s West Bank offices.[citation needed]
I met a Jewish lawyer from Israel in Prague. He told me countless tales told to him by French Jewish clients who have had to take refuge in Israel.
He was able to provide statistical information on immigration into Israel by French Jewish people. Despite this, a French man , Catholic, flatly contradicted him and asserted that France is the most hospitable country in Europe for Jewish people.
Sometimes, we find it hard to accept reality.
Paddy Irishman, Paddy Israeliman and Paddy Frenchman walk into a bar… and have the dullest conversation in the history of the world.
Joyce in Ulysses:
— I just wanted to say, he said. Ireland, they say, has the honour of being the only country which never persecuted the jews. Do you know that? No. And do you know why?
He frowned sternly on the bright air.
— Why, sir? Stephen asked, beginning to smile.
— Because she never let them in, Mr Deasy said solemnly.
A coughball of laughter leaped from his throat dragging after it a rattling chain of phlegm. He turned back quickly, coughing, laughing, his lifted arms waving to the air.
— She never let them in, he cried again through his laughter as he stamped on gaitered feet over the gravel of the path. That’s why.
How would his religion help him
#Sean. Mr. Deasy assumes the Jews ever wanted to come here in the first place. I’d wager they didn’t.
Ireland is not very jew friendly. Alan shatter for example. I say so many racist posts here about him
The 1906 Limerick Boycott/Pogrom aside of course.
I know Israel is the spiritual home of the Jews but it seems strange that they were flown to Israel for burial even though they were not Israeli. Ok one of them has family there but the other two are being interred in a foreign land away from family and friends. Very different to the Irish way of being close to those who loved you and can visit your grave.
*the other three
Jews are humans too let them live in peace. It goes to shows that the terrorists killed Muslims, Jews and Christians and didn’t even spare the old. RIP
20 and 21, flup sake… thats a tough read..
Deepest respect for the four French citizens of Jewish faith who were buried in Israel today.
Innocent people just shopping at a store. Such a terrible loss for their families and loved ones.
Nice to see that Mr. Netanyahu acknowledged the man of Muslim faith who worked in the Kosher store and risked his life and to seven other Jewish people that day.
Ban the burka
What have French born Islamic extremists got against jews
I’m not sure, but it could have something to do with a certain hadith:
Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 4, Book 56, # 791
‘O Muslim! There is a Jew behind me; kill him!’
@Brian O Dálaigh, or maybe try your best to save them as was the case on the day
for the “O Muslim” present in the store.
@Thierry Ratt, Think you may find that Islamic fundamentalist extremists regardless of their country of origin, have a lot against people of every other faith, their own included.
I don’t think you quite followed what I was saying, Yippy. I’m not insinuating all Muslims would be prone to attacking Jews. I simply pointed out a hadith that extremists (i.e. a minority) would find very handy in their justification for attacks against Jews.
@BrianODálaigh, Sure I get ya now, I misinterpreted. Apologies.
Don’t worry, it happens all the time. So often, in fact, that countries go to war over misinterpretations. How fickle a species are we?
Z10 controlled media
I thought Denis o brien controlled the media?
Do all Jewish people who move to Israel go to settlements?
No
No. Most go to Tel Aviv. Only nutcase American ones tend to go to the settlements. And, as a good Israeli friend of mine has said on numerous occasions who as served in the IDF: “It’s not the Palestinians that you have to look out for; it’s the settlers!” As he also said, “the sooner Israel is out of the West Bank the better; and they can have East Jerusalem!”
No discrimination against Jews in Ireland. Well I was in South Africa and met up with a Jewish guy whose family left Limerick due to the “Limerick Boycott” or Limerick Pogrom in 1904. You can Google that. It is not something that we Irish boast about.
Does it really matter what religion??or culture??still humans at the end of the day ): Very sad..Prays to family’s and friends ): RIP
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