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‘No Room for Antisemitism’: Prague Mayor Quashes Rumored Kanye West Concert
Kanye West walking on the red carpet during the 67th Grammy Awards held at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA on Feb. 2, 2025. Photo: Elyse Jankowski/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
In the Czech Republic, local officials have pushed back against a potential Ye concert in Prague following the cancellation of a July show near Bratislava, refusing to grant permission for the rapper formerly known as Kanye West to perform his music, including potentially recent tracks such as “Heil Hitler.”
“There is no request to organize such a concert, and if we were asked, we would not approve it,” said Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda.
He told Heyfomo.cz that “there is no room for antisemitism in Prague.”
Deputy Mayor Jiří Pospíšil added that the city “is not the place to celebrate Nazism.” He described himself as “strongly against Kanye West performing in Prague,” explaining how “we experienced firsthand the horrors of the Second World War, and we must not give room to people who glorify these crimes.”
A petition and open letter to Svoboda launched on Wednesday has received more than 14,000 supporters.
“Kanye West is abusing his media influence to normalize the language and symbols of the evil of war, which Europe, including the Czech Republic, has long rejected,” the letter states. “It is unacceptable that Prague provides space for his performance – not for musical expression, but for dangerous public attitudes that are in direct conflict with European historical memory and democratic values.”
The letter also points to “possible serious security risks” and notes that “an event of this type may attract radical and extremist groups from the Czech Republic and abroad. Given the public stance of the performer, there is a legitimate concern about the appearance of Nazi symbolism, violent behavior or the spread of ideologies that are unacceptable in a democratic society and criminal in the Czech Republic.”
The petitioners also argued that a Ye performance could break the law, violating a statute prohibiting “movements aimed at suppressing human rights and freedoms is a criminal offense, including the use of symbols, slogans or expressions of sympathy.”
Signatories of the letter included nonprofit leaders, lawyers, human rights experts, artists, attorneys, journalists, and scholars.
On Feb. 25, the European Jewish Congress reported that Czech police had investigated 40 percent more antisemitic hate crimes in 2024 compared to 2023, a total of 30 incidents of hate speech.
“In 2022, we dealt with 23 cases of antisemitic hate speech, 18 in 2023, and 30 in 2024,” said Czech Police spokesperson Ondřej Moravčík. “We are still in close contact with operators and owners of Jewish sites and carry out increased surveillance activities there.”
The Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic (FŽO) said that for 2023 it documented 4,328 antisemitic incidents, showing a 90 percent jump from the 2,277 incidents found in 2022. The group said that “in the Czech Republic, as in other countries, there is an insufficient level of reporting hate crimes, often due to stigma, distrust in institutions, or concerns about personal safety.”
For the 2023 incidents, FŽO saw a spike (almost 42 percent of the year’s total) from October through December, following the Hamas terror group’s Oct. 7 invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.
According to the Anti-Defamation League’s Global 100 survey of antisemitic attitudes by country, research into the Czech Republic shows elevated levels of bigotry against Jews (support for at least 6 stereotypes) in 15 percent of adults — 1.3 million people — ranking the nation as the eleventh least antisemitic on the planet.
Ye has faced similar consequences in other countries for his decision to promote Nazism through his music, public appearances, TV ads, and even in the merchandise he hawks on his website. On July 2, Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced the cancellation of the hip hop mogul’s visa, preventing future visits with his Australian wife Bianca Censori’s family in Melbourne.
“We have enough problems in this country already without deliberately importing bigotry,” Burke said.
“In Whose Name?,” a documentary featuring Ye, will be released on Sept. 19. The film’s director, Nico Ballesteros, began shooting the project six years ago at age 18 when West gave him what The Hollywood Reporter described on Wednesday as “unfettered access to his life, breakdowns and inner circle,” yielding more than 3,000 hours of footage.
“For a shy kid, the camera became both a shield and a window, a way to channel my introspection while still engaging with the world,” Ballesteros said. “Ye has always had someone filming him too, a lens between him and the noise. Maybe that’s why we understood each other without saying much. I was able to fade into the background, stay present, the camera always rolling, catching moments outside the public performance.”
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Israel’s Supreme Court Orders Improved Food for Security Prisoners
Israel’s Supreme Court. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
i24 News – Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday instructed the Prison Service (Shabas) to guarantee adequate food supplies for security prisoners, ruling that current conditions fall short of minimum legal standards. The decision followed an appeal filed by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.
In a 2–1 ruling, the court found that the food situation posed “a risk of non-compliance with legal standards.” Justice Dafna Barak-Erez stressed that the matter concerned “basic conditions necessary for survival, as required by law,” not comfort or privilege. Justice Ofer Grosskopf agreed, noting the state had not shown the policy was consistently applied to all inmates.
Justice David Mintz dissented, maintaining that the existing policy already met legal requirements.
The court underscored that Israel’s legal obligations remain binding, even in light of the ongoing hostage crisis in Gaza and the fact that many of the prisoners include Hamas members involved in the October 7, 2023 attack.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir condemned the ruling, arguing that while hostages in Gaza lack protection, “terrorist murderers, kidnappers, and rapists in prison” benefit from the Court’s intervention. He added that prisoners would continue receiving only the minimum conditions required by law.
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Ukrainian Government Building Set Ablaze in Record Russian Airstrike
Illustrative. More damage caused by the Russian drone that hit the Perlina school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Oct. 30, 2024. Photo: Jewish community JCC in Kyiv, Kyiv municipality, and Yan Dobronosov
i24 News – The Ukrainian government’s main building in Kyiv was hit overnight Saturday by Russian airstrikes for the first time since the war, igniting a fire in the building, authorities said. Firefighters are working to put out the flames.
“The government building was damaged by an enemy attack — the roof and upper floors,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko said. The blaze is is burning in the area of the office of the prime minister.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched a total of 805 drones and 13 missiles overnight on Ukraine — a record number since the start of the war.
Also as a result of the strike, a baby and a young woman were killed after a nine-story residential building was hit in the Svyatoshynsky district, also in Kyiv. Rescuers are still looking for a third body, authorities said. A woman was also reported killed in the strike in Novopavlivka village.
“The world must respond to this destruction not only with words, but also with actions. We need to increase sanctions pressure – primarily against Russian oil and gas. We need new restrictions that will hit the Kremlin’s military machine. And most importantly, Ukraine needs weapons. Something that will stop the terror and prevent Russia from trying to kill Ukrainians every day,” wrote Sviridenko after the attack.
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‘Trump’s Legacy Crumbles’: Israelis Call on US President to End Gaza War
Israeli protestors take part in a rally demanding the immediate release of the hostages kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, and the end of war in Gaza, in Jerusalem September 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday night, issuing direct appeals to US President Donald Trump to force an end to the Gaza war and secure the release of the hostages.
Protesters packed a public square outside the military headquarters, waving Israeli flags and holding placards with images of the hostages. Some carried signs, including one that read: ‘Trump’s legacy crumbles as the Gaza war persists.’
Another said: “PRESIDENT TRUMP, SAVE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”
“We think that Trump is the only man in the world who has authority over Bibi, that can force Bibi to do this,” said Tel Aviv resident Boaz, 40, referring to the Israeli prime minister.
There is growing despair among many Israelis at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has ordered the military to capture a major urban center where hostages may be held.
Families of the hostages and their supporters fear the assault on Gaza City could endanger their loved ones, a concern the military leadership shares, according to Israeli officials.
Orna Neutra, the mother of an Israeli soldier who was killed on October 7, 2023 and whose body is being held in Gaza by militants, accused the government of abandoning its citizens.
“We truly hope that the United States will push both sides to finally reach a comprehensive deal that will bring them home,” she told the rally. Her son, Omer, is also American.
Tel Aviv has witnessed weekly demonstrations that have grown in size, with protesters demanding that the government secure a ceasefire with Hamas to obtain the release of hostages. Organizers said Saturday night’s rally was attended by tens of thousands. A large demonstration was also held in Jerusalem.
There are 48 hostages held in Gaza. Israeli officials believe that around 20 are still alive. Palestinian terrorists abducted 251 people from Israel on October 7, 2023, when Hamas led its attack. Most of the hostages who have been released were freed after indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
NO PURPOSE
Trump had pledged a swift end to the war in Gaza during his presidential campaign, but nearly eight months into his second term, a resolution has remained elusive. On Friday, he said that Washington was engaged in “very deep” negotiations with Hamas.
Israeli forces have carried out heavy strikes on the suburbs of Gaza City, where, according to a global hunger monitor, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are facing famine. Israeli officials acknowledge that hunger exists in Gaza but deny that the territory is facing famine. On Saturday, the military warned civilians in Gaza City to leave and move to southern Gaza.
There are hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering in the city that was home to around a million before the war.
A video released by Hamas on Friday featured Israeli hostage Guy Gilboa-Dalal, 24, saying that he was being held in Gaza City and feared being killed by the military’s assault on the city. Rights groups have condemned such videos of hostages as inhumane. Israel says that it is psychological warfare.
The war has become unpopular among some segments of Israeli society, and opinion polls show that most Israelis want Netanyahu’s right-wing government to negotiate a permanent ceasefire with Hamas that secures the release of the hostages.
“The war has no purpose at all, except for violence and death,” said Boaz from Tel Aviv. Adam, 48, said it had become obvious that soldiers were being sent to war for “nothing.”
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since it launched its retaliatory war after Hamas fighters attacked Israel from Gaza in October 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed in that attack on southern Israel.
The terrorist group, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades but today controls only parts of the enclave, on Saturday once again said that it would release all hostages if Israel agreed to end the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza.
Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all of the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering.
The prime minister has said Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold and capturing it is necessary to defeat the Palestinian militant group, whose October 2023 attack on Israel led to the war.
Hamas has acknowledged it would no longer govern Gaza once the war ends but has refused to discuss laying down its weapons.