Egyptian Anti-Semitic Activist Loses Sakharov Prize Nomination
A coalition of left-wing parties in the European parliament has withdrawn its nomination of an anti-Semitic Egyptian activist for the prestigious Sakharov Prize, awarded annually in honor of the late Soviet dissident, Andrei Sakharov.
Alaa Abdel Fattah, a secularist blogger and online advocate who played a prominent role in the demonstrations that brought an end to the rule of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, had been nominated for the prize by the GUE/NGL, a bloc which brings together green and socialist parties from across Europe.
Announcing the withdrawal of the nomination, GUE/NGL Group President Gabi Zimmer claimed to have been unaware of Abdel Fattah’s lengthy record of anti-Semitic statements, including a tweet in which he called for the murder of “a critical number of Israelis.”
“We cannot and will not tolerate such behaviour. This call goes against all our principles as well as the criteria for nomination for the Sakharov Prize,” Zimmer said. “Our group has always favored debate and political confrontation between peoples, including the Israeli people. It is in this context that our group has decided to withdraw its proposal.”
An editorial in the Wall Street Journal described Abdel Fattah as a “dissident for hate.” Calling for his nomination to be withdrawn, the editorial drew attention to Abdel Fattah’s anti-Semitic outbursts on Twitter over the last five years.+
http://www.algemeiner.com/2014/10/01/egyptian-anti-semitic-activist-loses-sakharov-prize-nomination/