Jewish Student in Belgium Subjected to Anti-Semitic Abuse by Fellow Students

A 12-year-old Jewish boy has been the target of anti-Semitic abuse and harassment at a Belgian school, various media report. The boy’s mother ominously described one especially disturbing incident as “a gas attack in showers,” designed to mimic Jews being gassed to death during the Holocaust.

Local police are currently investigating the claims made by the student’s mother, in a complaint filed last Thursday. The woman reportedly told Belgian media that her son has been subjected to anti-Semitic harassment, both verbally and physically, since 2015. The boy’s mother reported that the harassment against her One of the students involved in the harassment is the son of a teacher at the school, located in Rennes-le-Chateau, south of Brussels.

In 2015, the Jewish student told his mother that he had been “gassed in the showers” at school, when his fellow students sprayed him deodorant and beat him on the hands and back with mops. The Jewish student added that a teacher at the school reacted dismissively to the repeated anti-Semitic abuse when informed about it by the student himself.

“My son will leave the school soon,” the boy’s mother was quoted as saying. “It is important that the teachers take his complaints seriously.”

Joel Rubinfeld, president of the Belgian League Against Anti-Semitism (BLAA), says he has collected testimony from students at the school saying that they talked about Hitler.

“I am concerned by the increase is such incidents in schools in Brussels and the general area,” Rubinfeld was quoted as saying by Ynet. The three non-Jewish students believed to be involved in the abuse have denied any wrongdoing, claiming they were on friendly terms with the Jewish student, and that the deodorant-spraying incident was merely a game to see who could last the longest.


The author: Michel DEURINCK

Michel Deurinck, born in Brussels in 1950, started his career in the Belgian civil service, dedicating over 30 years to public service. Upon retirement, he pursued his passion for journalism. Transitioning into this new field, he quickly gained recognition for his insightful reporting on politics and culture. Deurinck's balanced and thoughtful approach to journalism has made him a respected figure in Belgian media.

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