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Bulgaria’s ambassador to Israel condemned for skipping Holocaust history conference
(JTA) — Bulgaria’s ambassador to Israel did not attend a conference on Bulgarian Holocaust history last week, in a move that organizers said displays her government’s attempts to whitewash that history.
An embassy spokesperson told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that Ambassador Rumiana Bachvarova had received “a last-minute invitation to greet the conference” and “decided that it was good for the conversations and discussions to remain at an expert historical level, without any political presence or participation in them.”
The three-day event, titled “Persecution and Collaboration, Rescue and Survival: New Perspectives Regarding Bulgaria and the Holocaust 80 Years Later,” was hosted by Yad Vashem, Bar-Ilan University and the Tel Aviv Cinematheque from May 22-24.
“We believe that in the future the conversations and discussions between Bulgarian and Israeli historians will continue,” the spokesperson wrote, “and will contribute to an objective and comprehensive clarification of historical events.”
This year marks 80 years since protests in Bulgaria famously thwarted the deportation of its Jewish population. But respected historians have argued that King Boris III delivered over 11,000 other Jews to Nazi camps from the Bulgarian-occupied zone, in what is today North Macedonia. It’s a story that Bulgaria doesn’t want to face, critics say.
“The gruesome unvarnished truth that it was the Bulgarian government of King Boris III — not Nazi Germany — that rounded up 11,343 Jews from Macedonia, Thrace and Pirot and knowingly sent them to be murdered at Treblinka is an ‘historical event’ that does not require ‘clarification,’ comprehensive or otherwise,” historian and attorney Menachem Rosensaft, who had delivered a keynote speech at the event, told JTA.
“By refusing to even greet the conference participants, Ambassador Bachvarova, perhaps acting under orders, seems intent on continuing her government’s obfuscation of history by studiously refusing to admit that Bulgaria has the blood of these 11,343 Jews on its conscience,” Rosensaft, also associate executive vice president of the World Jewish Congress, added via a WhatsApp text.
Event organizer and filmmaker Jacky Comforty, author of “The Stolen Narrative of The Bulgarian Jews and The Holocaust” (2021) and director of a film about how Bulgaria foiled Hitler, told JTA that Bachvarova’s approach to the history is “propaganda oriented.” He added that in Bulgarian “neo-Nazi circles” it can often be read that “Jews are not grateful that they were saved.”
Comforty said Bachvarova was previously invited to give audience feedback on a film of his about this history while it was in progress. “She said she would not come because it was an anti-Bulgarian event,” Comforty said.
“Bulgarian officials have tried to use this story” of the rescue of Jews “and they are overdrawing on their humanitarian credit,” he said.
Jacky Vidal, chair of the Jaffa-based Bulgarian Jewry Heritage House, said he had sent the invitation to the ambassador. “I didn’t hear back, and I don’t know the reason,” he said, adding that he understood she was attending a ceremony honoring the memory of Dimitar Peshev, “one of the biggest rescuers of Bulgarian Jews.”
Peshev was a pro-German politician who nevertheless intervened to prevent King Boris from deporting its Jews in 1943.
“Bulgaria does have a very laudable credit with respect to the Holocaust,” Rosensaft said. “It is a fact that 48,000 Jews from Bulgaria were not deported to the death camps and therefore survived. It is also a fact that his process was not led by King Boris.”
The rescue was, he said, initiated by Bulgarian Orthodox church bishops, Metropolitan Stephan of Sofia and Metropolitan Kiril of Plovdiv — both of whom were posthumously recognized together with Peshev by Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust history authority and memorial.
In March, according to the online publication Balkan Insight, Bulgarian journalist Emmy Barouh sent an open letter to Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, saying that she feared the anniversary of the rescue of Bulgarian Jews might be “used for political purposes.”
“The names of all 11,343 people put into sealed wagons and deported to Treblinka by the Bulgarian police and army are known. The manner in which the Bulgarian soldiers and officers treated them on behalf of the state and under the Bulgarian flag is also known. The astonishing cruelty in the last days of their lives is documented. The indifference to the tragedy of those whose last life was spent under the control of the Bulgarian army and police shows a particular moral bankruptcy,” she wrote.
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Why You Should Check Out Responsible Gaming Tools at Casinos
The online casino sector has exploded in popularity across North America in recent years. In the US, in particular, there is massive competition due to the opening up of markets in different states, with both new operators and established ones vying for attention in a huge market. In Canada, where the market is much more mature, there is, nevertheless, intense competition between platforms to attract players.
Yet, while the first thing you see from a casino platform is the bonus offers and headline games, it is also worth checking out the responsible gaming tools offered by the platform. Top casinos like DraftKings will offer a suite of responsible gaming tools as a matter of course, whereas other platforms may be obligated to do so based on the regulations of a jurisdiction, but whether they are offered by choice or not, it’s a good idea for new players to have a look.
What are responsible gaming tools?
The term responsible gaming tools, sometimes referred to as responsible gambling tools, is a catch-all for applications that you can use voluntarily to ensure that online casino and sports betting do not run away from you.
The types of tools offered
The most common type of responsible gaming tool is deposit limits. They are quite simple: You choose an amount that you are comfortable with depositing each day, week or month and the platform will only allow that amount. If you want to change them, you usually have to wait 24 hours, which is known as the cool-off period. You can appreciate the efficacy of this: if you are losing, you can be emotional, and even angry, so mandating a period of reflection before you can deposit again gives you time to consider whether to do it or not.
Deposit limits don’t always have to be rigid. Some platforms allow for net deposit limits, which might work better for those frequent players who simply don’t want to eat into their budgets. In the simplest terms, net deposit limits mean you can deposit more overall if you win and cash out, with a record kept of your deposits and withdrawals.
Deposit limits are not the only tool offered. You might also be able to put a limit on the amount of time spent on a platform. Say, for instance, that you don’t want to be playing for any longer than an hour each week, you can add tools to restrict access once you attempt to play any more than that.
Timeout and take a break tools are also useful, especially among players who feel that things are getting a little heated. Usually, you can set an amount of time – could be a day, week or year – where you are frozen out of your account. Once the time elapses, you can start playing again. Obviously, there are also tools to restrict access for those players who feel they need something more drastic. In this case, you can self-exclude from the platform or across all platforms if you want.
Why these tools work
The above shows a wide range of tools to help manage a gaming platform responsibly. They are designed to be flexible: If you are a high roller with a large budget, you may be comfortable with large deposit limits – or none at all – but each time of player is different, and using quick and easy tools to set those limits before you start playing for the first time feels like a no-brainer. It makes the overall experience that much more enjoyable.
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9 Israeli Soldiers Injured in Lebanon Fighting, 2 in Serious Condition
Two IDF soldiers. Photo: IDF.
i24 News – Two Israeli officers were seriously wounded and seven additional soldiers injured in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.
According to the military, the first incident occurred during the morning hours amid an encounter between Israeli forces and armed militants operating in the area.
During the engagement, an anti-tank missile was launched toward deployed troops, which the IDF said was fired by Hezbollah operatives. Two officers were struck in the attack, with one sustaining serious injuries and the second moderately wounded.
A second incident took place overnight in a separate sector of southern Lebanon, when Israeli forces operating in the area came under rocket fire. In that strike, one officer was seriously wounded and six soldiers were moderately injured, the IDF said.
The incidents come amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, marked by repeated exchanges of fire and periodic ground confrontations in southern Lebanon.
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Report: Some 30 US Troops Injured in Iranian Attacks on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi
Screenshot of video of Saudi Arabia’s Air Force intercepts Iranian drones over Saudi airspace. Photo: Saudi Defense Ministry / Screenshot
i24 News – Over 12 US troops have been injured in Iranian attacks on a Saudi air base in the past week, the Associated Press reported on Saturday citing two people who have been briefed on the matter.
On Friday, the Islamic Republic launched six ballistic missiles and 29 drones at Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan air base, wounding at least 15 troops, including five seriously, according to the sources who spoke to AP on the condition of anonymity.
US officials initially reported that at least 10 US troops were injured, including two seriously wounded.
The base had come under attack twice earlier this week, including an incident that injured 14 US troops, according to the people who had been briefed on the matter.
Located some 100 kilometers from the Saudi capital of Riyadh, the base is run by the Royal Saudi Air Force, but is also used by US troops.