Tag Archive for Spain

Palestinian from Dubai attains Spanish citizenship after discovering Jewish roots

After finding her great-grandmother’s old identity cards in Beirut, Heba was able to seek Spanish citizenship following a 2015 law that allowed naturalization to anyone whose Jewish ancestors ‘fled’ the Spanish Inquisition.

By CNAAN LIPHSHIZ/JTA

 

As a UK-based academic who was born in Dubai to a Palestinian father and Lebanese mother, Heba Nabil Iskandarani had plenty of potential national identities.

What she lacked, however, was a passport.

A 26-year-old lecturer in architecture at Birmingham City University, Iskandarani has been stateless for most of her life, possessing only a Lebanese travel document that defines her as a Palestinian refugee.

Heba Nabil Iskandarani’s newly acquired Spanish Passport and her Lebanese refugee Passport.-

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Spanish judge issues arrest warrants for ‘Netanyahu & Gang’

 

In a move branded ‘provocative’ by Israel’s foreign ministry, since the UN declared Gaza blockade legal, & ICC’s refusal to investigate the intercepted flotilla of ships, the Israeli PM & 6 current & former gov’t officials were named on arrest warrants.

By Arutz Sheva Staff

 

A Spanish judge has issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, along with several other serving and former government officials.

 

Judge Jose de la Mata ordered police and national guard forces to notify him immediately if Netanyahu or several other named Israeli officials entered the country. The ruling surrounds the case of the 2010 Mavi Marmara raid, in which IDF forces were attacked by Islamist extremists as they intercepted a flotilla of ships attempting to breach the IDF’s blockade of Hamas-ruled Gaza. Continue Reading »

Spanish Town Officially Changes Name After 400 Years From ‘Camp Kill Jews’ to ‘Jews’ Hill’

 

Hundreds of years after the Spanish Inquisition, a Spanish town formerly known as Castillo Matajudíos, which translates to Camp Kill Jews, was renamed to Castillo Mota de Judíos, or Jews’ Hill Camp.

By Eli Leon & Israel Hayom Staff

 

Israeli Ambassador to Spain Daniel Kutner took part on Friday in a name-changing ceremony for an ancient Spanish town that did away with an old anti-Semitic name.

Changing signs at the renaming ceremony – Photo: AFP

The town, formerly Castrillo Matajudíos, which translates to Camp Kill Jews, was renamed as Castrillo Mota de Judíos, or Jews’ Hill Camp.

Historical records indicate that Jews’ Hill Camp was actually the town’s original name, which was changed to Camp Kill Jews in 1627, 135 years after Jews were ordered to convert to Catholicism or flee the country in the 1492 Spanish Inquisition. Continue Reading »

#BDSfail: Following widespread condemnation, Spanish festival reverses decision to disinvite Matisyahu

view videoRetraction comes after Spanish gov’t condemned reggae festival’s anti-Semitic axing of Jewish singer, after he ignored demands to publicly accept Palestinian state.

By i24news

 

The Rototom Sunsplash festival in Spain retracted its decision to disinvite Jewish reggae artist Matisyahu after he failed to comply with the demand of publicly endorsing Palestinian statehood, an ultimatum that incurred the organizers accusations of anti-Semitism.

Jewish reggae artist Matisyahu – Photo: AFP

Matisyahu, who fuses reggae and hip-hop with Jewish influences in his songs, had been due to perform at the weeklong Rototom SunSplash festival, one of Europe’s largest reggae festivals, in Benicassim in eastern Spain on Saturday. Continue Reading »

Spanish Festival Cancelled Matisyahu for ‘Refusing to Endorse Palestinian State’

view video#RESPECT
Spanish media reports Jewish reggae star was cancelled from Spanish festival for refusing outrageous ultimatum: ‘Publicly support Palestinian state or get cancelled.’

By Ari Soffer

 

A Spanish music festival has cancelled a performance by Jewish reggae star Matisyahu – because he refused to produce a statement clearly endorsing “Palestinian statehood,” according to Spanish media outlets.

Matisyahu – who shot to fame as a bearded “hassidic raggae” star, before leaving Orthodox Judaism in 2011 – was due to appear at the Rototom Sunsplash festival in Benicassim, north of Valencia. The yearly music festival is the European tribute to the major Jamaican reggae festival of the same name. Continue Reading »

Residents of the Spanish Town Officially Change Name From ‘Camp Kill Jews’

By i24news

 

The Spanish village of Castrillo Matajudios – which means “Camp Kill Jews” – on Monday officially changed its name to Castrillo Mota de Judios (“Jews’ Hill Camp”) following a referendum and regional government approval.

The road sign at the entrance of the small Spanish town of Castrillo Matajudios, which means Castrillo Kill Jews in English, on April 21, 2014 – Photo: Cesar Manso/AFP

A vote by residents of the town in May 2014 went 29-19 in favor of scrapping the name, which has been in existence since at least 1623.

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Spain Approves New Law Granting Dual Citizenship to Descendents of Exiled Jews

In 1492 the Catholic monarchs Isabella & Ferdinand ordered around 300,000 Jews living in Spain to convert to Catholicism or be exiled forever. Today, an estimated 3.5 million Sephardi Jews from around the world could apply for Spanish citizenship.

By News Agencies & Israel Hayom Staff

 

The Spanish government approved a law on Friday allowing descendants of Jews expelled from the country in 1492 to seek Spanish nationality without giving up their current citizenship.

A synagogue in Toledo, Spain, built in 1180 – Photo: Reuters

Spain’s Justice Minister Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón said Spain owed the Sephardi community a debt for spreading the Spanish language and culture around the world as well as fixing what the government calls the “historic mistake” of sending Jews into exile. Continue Reading »

Spain approves citizenship for Jewish descendants of those banished 500 years ago

 

Spanish cabinet approved bill that would allow dual citizenship to the descendants of Jews forced into exile 500 years ago.

Applicants must take a Spanish culture test & have their ties to Spain vetted by experts.

The Associated Press and Israel Hayom Staff

 

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Spaniards go viral with anti-Semitic Tweets

Now I understand Hitler and his hate for the Jews…’: Over 17,500 Anti-Semitic Tweets after Israeli Victory over Spain’s ‘Real Madrid’

 

Twitter users in Spain posted 17,500 messages of anti-Semitic abuse after Israeli basketball team Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Real Madrid on Sunday night to win the Euroleague Championship, reports the Jerusalem Post.

basketballJewish groups in the Catalonia region filed a legal complaint over the messages, which flooded the Twitter network after Maccabi’s 98-86 overtime win.

Angry Spanish supporters of Real Madrid created an expletive anti-Semitic hashtag in their messages after the match, which briefly became one of the most popular keywords on Twitter in Spain. Continue Reading »

Spanish town with ‘Kill Jews’ in its name votes to change it

 

 

The Spanish village’s 56 registered voters have marked May 25 as the day to decide whether to keep the name or revert to its original name.

Researchers believe Jewish residents that converted to Catholicism, changed the name to convince Spaniards they opposed Jews.

The Associated Press and Israel Hayom Staff

 

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After Spanish law for exiled Jewish return, Muslims demand equal status

Spanish Muslims say: New law should include all those expelled, otherwise Spain’s decision is ‘selective, if not racist.’

By

 

Spanish Muslims are urging their government to grant citizenship to descendants of Muslims who were expelled from Spain, following a bill granting that right to Jews whose ancestors were forced to leave during the Inquisition.

Spanish passport

The demand was made this week in a statement by the Association for Historical Legacy of Al-Andalus, the Spanish news agency EFE reported on February 17.

“The Spanish state should grant the same rights to all those who were expelled, otherwise their decision is selective, if not racist,” Bayi Loubaris, the association’s president, told EFE.

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Portugal follows Spain in granting citizenship to descendants of exiled Sephardic Jews

Just 3 years after initially being granted refuge in Portugal after fleeing the Spanish expulsion of 1492, the exiled Jews again faced expulsion.

 

 

Portugal intends to follow Spain’s lead in granting citizenship to to the descendants of Sephardic Jews exiled in the fifteenth century, the country’s tourism minister said this week.

A man holds a Torah scroll during the festive procession returning it to Trancoso.

A man holds a Torah scroll during the festive procession returning it to Trancoso. Photo: Courtesy Michael Freund

Minister Adolfo Mesquita Nunes told Channel One’s “View of the World” program, broadcast on Saturday night, that the the rding of a draft bill, similar to that announced by Spain just over a week ago, will soon be ready. Continue Reading »

Spain grants nationality to exiled Sephardic Jews

 

Spain approves law granting foreign Jews that had chosen to flee rather than convert to Catholicism, the right of dual nationality.

By REUTERS

 

 

The Spanish government approved a law on Friday allowing descendents of Sephardic Jews expelled from the country in 1492 to seek Spanish nationality without giving up their current citizenship.

Marranos: Secret Seder in Spain during the times of inquisition, painting by Moshe Maimon.

Marranos: Secret Seder in Spain during the times of inquisition, painting by Moshe Maimon. – Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Spain’s Justice Minister Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon said Spain owed the Sephardic community a debt for spreading the Spanish language and culture around the world. The word Sephardic comes from Sefarad, or Spain in Hebrew. Continue Reading »

New luxury hotel built on 15th century Spanish synagogue opens new shul

The 600 yr-old synagogue was unearthed during the construction of a new 5-star hotel, which was opened last year.

The Hotel will also house a cultural center offering an overview of Jewish history in Spain.

By

 

 

A Spanish hotel built on the remains of a 15th century synagogue opened a new synagogue on its seventh floor last week.

Synagogue in Spain, illustration

The western wall of the Synagogue of Córdoba, Spain. – Photo courtesy: Wikipedia Commons

The opening at the four-star Parador de Lorca hotel in Lorca, a city in the southeastern region of Murcia, was the result of negotiations between management and the Sefarad Beitenu Jewish association, which will run the shul, according to a report in the Murcia Economia newspaper. Continue Reading »

Pro-Palestinian activists attempt to arrest Meridor & Dichter in Spain fails

 

 

Pro-Palestinian activists sought arrest warrants for the arrest of Avi Dichter, the Shin Bet chief during Shehada’s assassination in 2002 and Dan Meridor, a cabinet minister during the Marmara fiasco.

By Attila Somfalvi

Pro-Palestinian activists in Spain demanded arrest warrants be issued against former Shin Bet Chief Avi Dichter and former Minister Dan Meridor, on a visit to the country.

The attempt failed, and Dichter and Meridor, who have stayed in Spain for three days, will return on Saturday to Israel.

Another notable incident occurred with Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Doron Almog, who did not go down his airplane in Britain after he heard he was to be arrested in 2005

Dichter, Meridor in poster distributed in Spain

Dichter, Meridor in poster distributed in Spain

This new entanglement started several days ago, when it became known that Dichter – who haven’t been in Spain in the last 15 years – was to attend a conference organized by a security think tank which collaborates with the Spanish Defense Ministry. Continue Reading »