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Fury Over Belgian Senator’s False Accusation That Israeli Rabbis Order ‘Rape’ of Palestinian Women
Belgian Senator Nadia el Yousfi speaks at a parliamentary hearing. Photo: Screenshot
Belgium’s representative Jewish organization has angrily denounced a Socialist Party senator for comments made at a parliamentary hearing that amounted to “hateful antisemitism.”
Brussels Senator Nadia El Yousfi made the remarks at a hearing on international affairs on Monday debating the ongoing Israeli military operation in Gaza provoked by the Oct. 7 pogrom carried out by Hamas terrorists.
Accusing Israel of “genocide” and “state terrorism” while Israel’s Ambassador in Brussels, Idit Rosenzweig-Abu, observed the proceedings, El Yousfi claimed without citing evidence that Israeli rabbis have called for the rape of Palestinian women.
“I remind you that within the Israeli government, the far right is very present,” El Yousfi stated. “There are calls for hatred, calls for the destruction of Gaza, all the calls to empty Gaza of its inhabitants. And one of the elements that also shocks me is that we have rabbis … who call for the rape of Palestinian women and so on. I think it’s important to have all the facts so that we can be as objective as possible.”
In response, an incredulous Rosenzweig-Abu said her initial thought was that El Yousfi’s accusation had been mistranslated.
“It’s the first time I’ve heard that,” the envoy said. “I was so shocked that I thought it was a translation error. But that’s exactly what she said.”
She added that during “past discussions in parliament and the senate, I’ve had confrontations, difficult discussions, I’ve heard many defamatory accusations, but this is a new low.”
In a statement on Thursday, the Coordination Committee of Belgian Jewish Organizations (CCOJB) added to the condemnation of El Yousfi.
“Such statements are the expression of a particularly hateful antisemitism that has no place in the Palais de la Nation,” the CCOJB declared.
The group pointed to evidence of the systematic rape and sexual abuse of Israeli women witnessed on Oct.7, particularly at the Nova music festival in the Negev.
“The particularly unbearable nature of the remarks denounced takes on a truly abject dimension in the context of the acts of femicide, rape, disembowelment, beheadings, and other serious attacks on Israeli women, perpetrated on Oct. 7 by Hamas terrorists,” the CCOJB asserted.
Comparing El Yousfi’s words with classically antisemitic “dark rumors” about Jews, the CCOJB argued that “over and above the criminal charges that such remarks may incur, Ms. El Yousfi bears full political responsibility for them, gravely tarnishing her status as a representative of the nation.”
“In view of the seriousness of Ms El Yousfi’s remarks, we feel that the most severe measures against her are called for,” the statement concluded.
Joel Rubinfeld, president of the Belgian League Against Antisemitism, situated El Yousfi’s speech in the context of growing antisemitism faced by the community since Oct. 7.
“The Jews in Belgium experienced a double trauma: the images of Oct. 7 with these pogroms, and the political reactions, the press, or even universities,” Rubinfeld told the French language service of Israeli broadcaster i24.
“Every weekend, demonstrations take place and bring together up to 50,000 people with antisemitic slogans. This climate contributes to the departure of many people,” Rubinfeld added.
The post Fury Over Belgian Senator’s False Accusation That Israeli Rabbis Order ‘Rape’ of Palestinian Women first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Rubio Heads to Israel Amid Tensions Among US Middle East Allies
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to members of the media, before departing for Israel at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, US, September 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard/Pool
US President Donald Trump’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio headed to Israel on Saturday, amid tensions with fellow US allies in the Middle East over Israel’s strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar and expansion of settlements in the West Bank.
Speaking to reporters before departure, Rubio reiterated that the US and President Donald Trump were not happy about the strikes.
Rubio said the US relationship with Israel would not be affected, but that he would discuss with the Israelis how the strike would affect Trump’s desire to secure the return of all the hostages held by Hamas, get rid of the terrorists and end the Gaza war.
“What’s happened, has happened,” he said. “We’re gonna meet with them. We’re gonna talk about what the future holds,” he said.
“There are still 48 hostages that deserve to be released immediately, all at once. And there is still the hard work ahead once this ends, of rebuilding Gaza in a way that provides people the quality of life that they all want.”
Rubio said it had yet to be determined who would do that, who would pay for it and who would be in charge of the process.
After Israel, Rubio is due to join Trump’s planned visit to Britain next week.
Hamas still holds 48 hostages, and Qatar has been one of the mediators, along with the US, trying to secure a ceasefire deal that would include the captives’ release.
On Tuesday, Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with an airstrike on Doha. US officials described it as a unilateral escalation that did not serve American or Israeli interests.
The strike on the territory of a close US ally sparked broad condemnation from other Arab states and derailed ceasefire and hostage talks brokered by Qatar.
On Friday, Rubio met with Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani at the White House, underscoring competing interests in the region that Rubio will seek to balance on his trip. Later that day, US President Donald Trump held dinner with the prime minister in New York.
Rubio’s trip comes ahead of high-level meetings at the United Nations in New York later this month. Countries including France and Britain are expected to recognize Palestinian statehood, a move opposed by Israel.
Washington says such recognition would bolster Hamas and Rubio has suggested the move could spur the annexation of the West Bank sought by hardline members of the Israeli government.
ON Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed an agreement to push ahead with a settlement expansion plan that would cut across West Bank land that the Palestinians seek for a state. Last week, the United Arab Emirates warned that this would cross a red line and undermine the U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords that normalized UAE-Israel relations in 2020.
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Netanyahu Posts Message Appearing to Confirm Hamas Leaders Survived Doha Strike
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a Plenum session of the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, in Jerusalem, June 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – In a statement posted to social media on Saturday evening, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the Qatar-based leadership of Hamas, reiterating that the jihadist group had to regard for the lives of Gazans and represented an obstacle to ending the war and releasing the Israelis it held hostage.
The wording of Netanyahu’s message appeared to confirm that the strike targeting the Hamas leaders in Doha was not crowned with success.
“The Hamas terrorists chiefs living in Qatar don’t care about the people in Gaza,” wrote Netanyahu. “They blocked all ceasefire attempts in order to endlessly drag out the war.” He added that “Getting rid of them would rid the main obstacle to releasing all our hostages and ending the war.”
Israel is yet to officially comment on the result of the strike, which has incurred widespread international criticism.
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Trump Hosts Qatari Prime Minister After Israeli Attack in Doha
Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani attends an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, following an Israeli attack on Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, Sept. 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
US President Donald Trump held dinner with the Qatari prime minister in New York on Friday, days after US ally Israel attacked Hamas leaders in Doha.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with an attack in Qatar on Tuesday, a strike that risked derailing US-backed efforts to broker a truce in Gaza and end the nearly two-year-old conflict. The attack was widely condemned in the Middle East and beyond as an act that could escalate tensions in a region already on edge.
Trump expressed annoyance about the strike in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and sought to assure the Qataris that such attacks would not happen again.
Trump and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani were joined by a top Trump adviser, US special envoy Steve Witkoff.
“Great dinner with POTUS. Just ended,” Qatar’s deputy chief of mission, Hamah Al-Muftah, said on X.
The White House confirmed the dinner had taken place but offered no details.
The session followed an hour-long meeting that al-Thani had at the White House on Friday with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
A source briefed on the meeting said they discussed Qatar’s future as a mediator in the region and defense cooperation in the wake of the Israeli strikes against Hamas in Doha.
Trump said he was unhappy with Israel’s strike, which he described as a unilateral action that did not advance US or Israeli interests.
Washington counts Qatar as a strong Gulf ally. Qatar has been a main mediator in long-running negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and for a post-conflict plan for the territory.
Al-Thani blamed Israel on Tuesday for trying to sabotage chances for peace but said Qatar would not be deterred from its role as mediator.