The Sunday Times Cartoon

[HellesBelles396]

Could someone please explain to me how this cartoon is anti-semitic? I am being serious because I've heard news reports all day and I don't see it at all.

I can see the cartoon is suggesting the Israeli policy with regard to the Palestine is heavy handed - building a wall from the bodies of the Palestinian people - but I can't at all see how it is saying that Jewish people are to blame.

To me, it suggests only that the leadership of Israel is to blame.

I agree with you but Rupert Murdoch doesn't so apologised for it (or he feels he might offend too many people if he doesn't).

The day before I'd listened to a Jew on Radio 4 saying it is unreasonable to associate him with the Israeli attitude to Palesinians, and I'd agreed with him, then the next day you get this.

I don't think it was anti-Semitic either. According to this commentary in the Guardian, it is the use of blood that makes it offensive to some Jews and equality campaigners.

the commentary was interesting - thank you for posting it. still none the wiser.

I was fuming about this all day yesterday. What a terrible, terrible accusation to make against Scarfe. I don't think there is anything to suggest that it is anti-Semitic, rather than simply a criticism of Israeli government policy. The "blood libel," though of course an atrocity, is not something that will come to many people's minds. Blood is a very common image in political satire, certainly in Scarfe's cartoons. It has to be, because governments routinely have blood on their hands.

I would agree but think that Holocaust Memorial day was not the day to publish it. There seems to be a tendency in some quarters to almost excuse the Holocaust because "look what the Israelis' are doing to the Palestinians".

(To be clear, I don't think Scarfe was invoking the blood libel at all. I think it is a moderately esoteric resonance that has been forced onto the image as a pretext for complaint.)

The jewish peoples can't possibly be claiming the 'rights' to all blood imagery! (Not that I think they are, BTW - just pointing out the absurdity.)

If Benjamin Netenyahu and the current Israeli political elite don't want international criticism for their policies towards the Palestinian peoples then they should change them.

BarbarianMum - but equally there's a tendency in the opposite corner to say "we can't criticise Israel on Palestine or any other subject because of the Holocaust". Neither is right.

I agree. I just think that, given the 365 days in the year, one day to remember the Holocaust without dragging in the Middle East conflict would be reasonable.

Yes, that's a fair point too.