By Inna Rogatchi, Times of Israel—
A week ago, we felt deep pain and utter indignation, after hearing on the simply unbelievable insult of justice and common sense, after the French Court of Cassation upheld the previous scandalous decision in the case of the vicious murder of Sarah Halimi, the Jewish French teacher and physician in Paris back in April 2017. According to that surreal decision, the monster who murdered Sarah, now a 31-year-old Islamist from Mali, has been freed of prosecution on the ground that before the premeditated murder he smoked cannabis. This upheld verdict will go to the annals of history staining the reputation of France for good.
Inevitably, such scandal and insult have caused a storming reaction. I was one of those who protested publicly.
Immediately, I started to receive letters, notes, reactions, feedback, questions from all over the world, from Jerusalem and London to New York and San-Paolo. People were not only justly outraged. They wanted to act. Many of them have asked me: “what can be done, additionally to writing the letters of protests to the French judiciary and to the office of the President of France? Would it be the demonstrations in New York? What kind of protest will there be in London? Whom from the officials should we protest? We would like to act”.
I felt very grateful. And encouraged. I am in constant touch with my French Jewish friends and colleagues who are working like lions and lionesses and who are fighting for Sarah Halimi’s honor and dignity of her poor family as attacked Jews always did, being focused, brave and unstoppable. Because, once and again, if we would not defend ourselves, nobody else will. Nothing has changed with that regard, does not matter what horrors might occur towards the Jews.
I have interconnected my French friends with those many other people worldwide who wanted to act in protesting that screaming injustice that had happened in France towards Sarah Halimi.
During this past week, French President Macron has reacted in time and better than he did previously, in a more articulated way. Not only he personally expressed his clear concern over the fresh shame of France, but his chancellery has issued a special statement about it, an official document. And I think, president Macron meant what he stated. Continue Reading….