UNESCO comes out fighting

UNESCO files complaint against Israeli delegation over Haaretz cartoon
A cartoon published in Haaretz causes a rift between Israel’s ambassador to UNESCO and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

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The incriminated cartoon, which provoked the ire of UNESCO.

(WOULD SOMEONE TRANSLATE THE hEBREW PLEASE AND PUT IT IN A COMMENT)

By Barak Ravid, HAARETZ

Israel’s ambassador to UNESCO didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when a senior official at the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization called him in for a tongue-lashing on Wednesday. The reason? A cartoon published in Haaretz.

The November 4 cartoon, a riff on the government’s anger at UNESCO’s decision to accept Palestine as a full member, showed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak sending an air force squadron to attack Iran, with Netanyahu ordering, “And on your way back, you’re gonna hit the UNESCO office in Ramallah!”

When he met with Eric Falt, UNESCO’s assistant director general for external relations and public information, Ambassador Nimrod Barkan was stunned to be handed a copy of this cartoon and an official letter of protest from UNESCO’s director general, Irina Bokova. Falt told Barkan the cartoon constituted incitement.

“A cartoon like this endangers the lives of unarmed diplomats, and you have an obligation to protect them,” Falt said, according to an Israeli source. “We understand that there is freedom of the press in Israel, but the government must prevent attacks on UNESCO.”

Barkan pointed out that the government has no control over editorial cartoons printed in the papers. “Ask yourselves what you did to make a moderate paper with a deeply internationalist bent publish such a cartoon,” he suggested. “Perhaps the problem is with you.”

After Barkan reported the conversation to the Foreign Ministry, it cabled back: “What exactly does UNESCO want of us – to send our fine boys to protect UNESCO’s staff, or to shut down the paper? It seems your work environment is getting more and more reminiscent of ‘Animal Farm.'”

November 11, 2011 | 9 Comments »

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9 Comments / 9 Comments

  1. Barkan pointed out that the government has no control over editorial cartoons printed in the papers. “Ask yourselves what you did to make a moderate paper with a deeply internationalist bent publish such a cartoon,” he suggested. “Perhaps the problem is with you.”

    Rolled gold!

  2. is it possible that the UNESCO people actually thought that this cartoon was serious?

    Do you mean that it wasn’t meant to be serious?

  4. A missed opportunity to humiliate UNESCO in public. Israel’s ambassador should have contacted the Haaretz cartoonist and have him recommend that UNESCO should hoist the Mogen Dovid above their quarters and immediately attach a mezuzza to every door post and have a few Hebrew prayers ready. This should be all the protection they need or deserve. Perhaps someone more creative than me can rework this idea into a U Tube presentation that can go viral. Also, is it possible that the UNESCO people actually thought that this cartoon was serious?

  6. Cartoon caption in English:

    “And on the way back, you’re gonna hit the UNESCO office in Ramallah”.

    And when they clearly side with the enemy, what do they expect?

  9. Barkan pointed out that the government has no control over editorial cartoons printed in the papers. “Ask yourselves what you did to make a moderate paper with a deeply internationalist bent publish such a cartoon,” he suggested. “Perhaps the problem is with you.”

    “Incitement”? Sounds like UNESCO believes in speech codes. How very Orwellian.