CAIRO: The Anti-Defamation League, an organization that monitors the defamation of the Jewish people, has accused the weekly Al-Youm Al-Sabei newspaper of anti-Semitism after publishing cartoon that it alleged offends Israel.
The cartoon by Mahmoud Al Sa’eed shows a Jew with a Star of David patch on his shoulder, milking a cow in the shape of a sink that signifies the Nile River Basin. The cartoon denoted Israel’s aspirations for the water of the Nile.
Commenting on the accusations, Mohamed Tharwat, head of the international affairs department at Al-youm Al-Sabei said, “This accusation is baseless because there is something called freedom of expression.
“The cartoon came after Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman toured some of the Nile Basin countries and as a comment on Israeli interventions in the debate.
He added that the newspaper is a liberal publication and that their editorial code states that they can’t publish anti-Zionist language.
“Our newspaper in general doesn’t encourage anti-Semitism. Even during the Gaza war [last December] we made sure to cover news with complete objectivity, Tharwat said.
In response, the ADL told Daily News Egypt in an email interview, “The Anti-Defamation League finds it to be a typical anti-Semitic caricature – with the exaggerated Jewish features and the impression left of Jewish control of vital resources.
The ADL website also pointed out that Al-Ghad and Ad-Dustur in Jordan; Al-Watan and Ash-Sharq in Qatar; Akhbar Al-Khalij in Bahrain; Al-Quds Al-‘Arabi in the UK; and Al-Khalij in UAE used the same theme.
Tharwat, however, believes that the aim of such a report is to influence public opinion.
In a related note, the ADL’s main story on their website Tuesday was an open letter to the UNESCO asking it to reject the nomination of Egypt’s Culture Minister Farouk Hosni for the top job.
Comments on the cartoon on the newspaper’s website varied.
“I hope they go to hell said one user who identified himself as Hesham. Another replied by saying “why do you defame other nations, do you accept the Jews to do the same to Egypt?
The Anti-Defamation League, the most powerful Israeli lobby in the United States, was founded in 1913. It monitors anti-Semitism in the Arab and international media.
