A controversial Dutch Muslim politician – who once said he prayed to Allah to “exterminate the Zionists” – tweeted last week that the Jewish practice of fasting on Yom Kippur is “not enough” to atone for Israel’s sins. i24 reports.
Arnoud Van Doorn is a member of the Islamist Party for Unity serving on the Hague’s city council who used to belong to the right-wing Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) until he converted to Islam in 2012.
On September 18 van Doorn tweeted, “Israel celebrates Yom Kippur tomorrow. I’d make it a month. One day to reflect on all its errors and regret them is not enough.”
Dutch media quickly denounced van Doorn’s remarks as anti-Semitic while hundreds took to social media to criticize him.
This is not the first time van Doorn has been under fire for anti-Semitism. In May, a prominent Dutch anti-Semitism watchdog, the Center for Information and Documentation on Israel, filed a complaint against the city councilman for tweeting he prayed Allah would “exterminate the Zionists.”
The complaint alleged van Doorn was inciting violence when he wrote on May 14, “It’s busy in heaven,” referring to over 60 Palestinians (about 50 of whom were claimed by Hamas as members of its military wing) who were killed that day in clashes with Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) at the Gaza-Israel border. “May Allah exterminate the Zionists.”
Abdoe Khoulani, another member of the Islamist Party for Unity, said last year that Israeli children on a visit to the Hague were “Zionist terrorists in training” and “future child murderers and occupiers.”
No charges were ultimately brought against Khoulani after prosecutors determined his remarks did not incite hate.