Spanish airline denies anti-semitism as France investigates flight incident with Jewish youth
French authorities are trying to establish whether a group of young French citizens were removed from a plane bound for Paris from Spain this week because they are Jewish.
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The airline, Vueling, has denied the claims.
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Several dozen French passengers on Wednesday were kicked off a flight leaving the Spanish city of Valencia for Paris, for what Spanish police and the airline described as unruly behaviour.
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France's ministry for Europe and foreign affairs said in a statement on Saturday that the minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, contacted the CEO of Vueling, Carolina Martinoli, to express his deep concern 'about the removal of a group of young French Jews from one of the company's flights.'
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'Ms. Martinoli assured Mr. Barrot that a thorough internal investigation was underway and that its findings would be shared with the French and Spanish authorities,' the ministry said.
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Vueling previously denied reports that the incident, which involved the removal of 44 minors and eight adults from flight V8166, was related to the passengers' religion.
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Some Israeli news outlets reported that the students were Jewish and that their removal was religiously motivated, a claim that was repeated by an Israeli minister online. Spain's Civil Guard said the minors and adults were French nationals. A Civil Guard spokesperson said the agents involved were not aware of the group's religious affiliation.
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A Vueling spokesperson said the passengers were removed after the minors repeatedly tampered with the plane's emergency equipment and interrupted the crew's safety demonstration. A Civil Guard spokesperson said the captain of the plane ordered the removal of the minors from the plane at Valencia's Manises Airport after they repeatedly ignored the crew's instructions.
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On Thursday, the Federation for Jewish Communities of Spain expressed concern about the incident. The group said that Vueling needed to provide documentary evidence of what happened on the plane.
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Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Released Israeli-Argentinian hostage fights for brother still held by Hamas
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Since his release, Iair Horn has deferred his own recovery to fight for the release of his brother and the other 50 hostages still being held in Gaza, 20 of whom are still believed to be alive. Negotiations collapse again Hearing that negotiations between Israel and Hamas were once again frozen over the weekend was devastating for his family, Horn said. Since his release, he has made four trips to the U.S., where he has met with President Donald Trump and other American leaders to plead for the hostages. He wasn't sure what to make of a comment Thursday by Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff, who said the U.S. would consider 'alternative options' after recalling its negotiating team from Qatar. 'I'm not a politician, and I'm not getting into those things because I don't understand them. What I understand is very simple: I want my brother back,' Horn said. 'My life is frozen right now. I live in a nightmare that every day they are kidnapping me anew,' he said. Horn, who is single, is currently living with family in Kfar Saba, a city near Tel Aviv. Previously, he worked a variety of jobs in Kibbutz Nir Oz, including in education, maintenance and the kitchen. He also ran the kibbutz pub. Every morning when he opens his eyes, he must think for a few moments to remember where he is, to remember he is no longer a hostage, Horn said. He's gained back some of the weight he lost in captivity, but his list of physical and psychological ailments is long. He does not know where he will live, what he will do in the future, or if he will go back to Nir Oz. The only thing he concentrates on is advocating for his brother's release. 'I never imagined that another half year would pass without seeing my little brother,' he said. Israel's war in Gaza has killed more than 59,700 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The agency's count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The U.N. and other international organizations see the ministry, which operates under the Hamas government, as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Brothers were held together Iair Horn is the oldest of three brothers who grew up in Argentina. He moved to Israel at age 20, followed by his middle brother, Amos. Eitan and their parents, long divorced, joined later. On Oct. 7, 2023, Eitan was visiting Iair at his home on Kibbutz Nir Oz when the sirens started, warning of incoming missiles. Soon they received text messages alerting them to the fact that militants had infiltrated the kibbutz. Militants entered Iair's home, where he was hiding in the reinforced safe room with Eitan. Iair attempted to hold the door shut until they began shooting through the door. Then he decided to surrender, worried they might use grenades or stronger weapons. Iair, who was immediately taken into Gaza, didn't know what had happened to his brother until around the 50th day of his captivity, when the militants placed the two brothers together, and Iair realized Eitan had also been kidnapped. Being together, even in their small, barred room, was a stroke of luck, Iair said. 'There's a lot of time with nothing to do, and we talked a lot about our childhoods, about elementary school, about the youth movement, about soccer,' he said. 'We tried to keep our sense of humor. He would ask me, did you brush your teeth? And I'd ask him, did you wash your bellybutton?' 'It was silly things, silly things between siblings that I don't have right now. Many times it happens now that something happens to me on the street that I have to tell him. And I can't, and I'm so sorry,' he said, starting to cry. Captors tell hostages that two will be released For most of the time, the Horn brothers were held with three other hostages. In early February, their captors came to the group of five and said that two would be released. 'For four days, we're looking at each other and wondering if we can decide or influence the decision,' he said. After four days, the captors arrived with a small plate of snacks and a video camera. They announced that Iair and another hostage would be leaving and filmed the emotional interaction between Iair and Eitan. Hamas later released the video on its social media channels, as it has with other videos of the hostages filmed under duress. Their last night together, Eitan and Iair laid side by side in silence. 'There was no conversation because in your head you don't want to have a conversation as if it's your last conversation,' Iair Horn said. Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. When their mother, Ruty Chmiel Strum, learned that Iair was coming out but not Eitan, she said to anyone who would listen, 'Why are you doing this to my sons? They are together and you're separating them?' No one gave her an answer, but Strum clung to hope that Eitan would be released soon. Now she mostly ignores news about the negotiations, tuning out the information to protect herself. She said she raised her three boys 'as a single body,' and their support for each other is unshakable. She clasps Iair's hand as they sit together on the couch in her home and looks forward to the day Eitan returns. 'I will feel the hug of my three sons, enjoying life, each supporting each other,' she said. 'It will happen.'
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
What to expect, and what not to, at the UN meeting on an Israel-Palestinian two-state solution
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'It was absolutely necessary to restart a political process, the two-state solution process, that is today threatened, more threatened than it has ever been,' French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Sunday on CBS News' 'Face the Nation.' Here's what's useful to know about the upcoming gathering. Why a two-state solution? The idea of dividing the Holy Land goes back decades. When the British mandate over Palestine ended, the U.N. partition plan in 1947 envisioned dividing the territory into Jewish and Arab states. Israel accepted the plan, but upon Israel's declaration of independence the following year, its Arab neighbors declared war and the plan was never implemented. Under a 1949 armistice, Jordan held control over the West Bank and east Jerusalem and Egypt over Gaza. Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek those lands for a future independent state alongside Israel, and this idea of a two-state solution based on Israel's pre-1967 boundaries has been the basis of peace talks dating back to the 1990s. The two-state solution has wide international support. The logic behind it is that the population of Israel — along with east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza — is divided equally between Jews and Palestinians. The establishment of an independent Palestine would leave Israel as a democratic country with a solid Jewish majority and grant the Palestinians their dream of self-determination. Why hold a conference now? France and Saudi Arabia have said they want to put a spotlight on the two-state solution as the only viable path to peace in the Middle East — and they want to see a road map with specific steps, first ending the war in Gaza. The co-chairs said in a document sent to U.N. members in May that the primary goal of the meeting is to identify actions by 'all relevant actors' to implement the two-state solution — and 'to urgently mobilize the necessary efforts and resources to achieve this aim, through concrete and time-bound commitments.' Saudi diplomat Manal Radwan, who led the country's delegation to the preparatory conference, said the meeting must 'chart a course for action, not reflection.' It must be 'anchored in a credible and irreversible political plan that addresses the root cause of the conflict and offers a real path to peace, dignity and mutual security,' she said. French President Emmanuel Macron has pushed for a broader movement toward a two-state solution in parallel with a recognition of Israel's right to defend itself. He announced late Thursday that France will recognize the state of Palestine officially at the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly in late September. 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All 193 U.N. member nations have been invited to attend the meeting and a French diplomat said about 40 ministers are expected. The United States and Israel are the only countries who are boycotting. The co-chairs have circulated an outcome document which could be adopted, and there could be some announcements of intentions to recognize a Palestinian state. But with Israel and the United States boycotting, there is no prospect of a breakthrough and the resumption of long-stalled negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians on an end to their conflict. Secretary-General António Guterres urged participants after the meeting was announced 'to keep the two-state solution alive.' And he said the international community must not only support a solution where independent states of Palestine and Israel live side-by-side in peace but 'materialize the conditions to make it happen.' ___ Federman reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writer Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this report.
Canada News.Net
3 hours ago
- Canada News.Net
Columbia agrees to pay $220 million to US administration over protests
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Columbia University has agreed to pay more than US$220 million to the U.S. government to regain federal research funding that had been cut earlier this year. The Trump administration had canceled the funding due to what it said was the university's failure to adequately address antisemitism on campus, especially during student protests linked to the Israel-Hamas conflict. The settlement includes two parts: $200 million will be paid over the next three years as a general settlement. $21 million will go to resolve claims that Jewish employees faced discrimination after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. Claire Shipman, Columbia's acting president, said the agreement helps the university move forward after months of federal pressure and uncertainty. Earlier this year, the government had already canceled over $400 million in grants and had threatened to take away more federal money. To restore its funding, Columbia agreed to make significant changes, including: Revising its student discipline process. Applying a federal definition of antisemitism in both classroom teaching and student investigations. Reviewing its Middle East studies to ensure they are balanced. Hiring new faculty for its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies. Ending any programs that aim for race-based goals, quotas, or "unlawful" diversity targets. Reporting to a federal monitor to prove its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs don't break the law. Although Columbia did not admit to any wrongdoing, it agreed to these changes as part of the settlement. Shipman said the university's independence would be maintained despite the reforms. Education Secretary Linda McMahon praised the deal, calling it a significant turning point in how universities that accept federal money are held accountable. She added that Columbia's changes could be a model for other elite colleges that want to show they support fairness and open debate. President Trump also commented, saying Columbia had agreed to stop "ridiculous DEI policies" and to admit students based only on merit. He warned that other colleges may soon face similar action if they misused federal funds or failed to protect student rights. Columbia's agreement follows months of controversy. The university became one of the first targets of the Trump administration's crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests and rising campus tensions. Some Jewish students said they faced insults, social exclusion, and embarrassment in class during the demonstrations. However, other Jewish students joined the protests, saying they were criticizing Israel's policies — not Judaism or Jews. The university has had three interim presidents in the past year. Its leadership admits the campus atmosphere must change. As part of the deal, Columbia will now ask international applicants why they want to study in the U.S. and will promote respectful discussion on campus. Columbia also agreed to share information with the government — if asked — about foreign students on visas who are suspended or expelled due to protests. This could make it easier for the Trump administration to deport certain student activists. Just a day before the deal was announced, Columbia said it would expel, suspend, or revoke degrees from more than 70 students who joined a pro-Palestinian protest inside the main library and a previous demonstration held during alumni weekend. The government pressure began with cuts in funding. A former student protester, Mahmoud Khalil, became the first non-citizen arrested as part of Trump's push to deport pro-Palestinian activists. Later, the Justice Department searched dorm rooms to see if the university was hiding people in the country illegally. Columbia responded that it would follow the law. Columbia was the first significant test case in Trump's efforts to reshape higher education, but attention later shifted to Harvard, which decided to challenge the administration in court. Trump's administration has used federal funding to force colleges to change. So far, over $2 billion has been withheld from top schools including Cornell, Brown, Northwestern, and Princeton. In one case, the University of Pennsylvania lost $175 million over a dispute involving transgender athlete Lia Thomas, which was returned after the school changed its policies. The administration is also pressuring public universities. The University of Virginia president resigned in June after a federal probe into DEI practices, and a similar investigation just began at George Mason University. This settlement at Columbia marks a turning point in how federal money is used to shape what happens on U.S. college campuses.
