Israeli envoy to Croatia ignites TV flap

Advertisement

Israel’s ambassador to Croatia demanded a local televison official be fired for anti-Semitism after broadcasting a concert by a controversial rock star.

In a letter to the Croatian parliamentary speaker, Ambassador Shmuel Meirom accused Croatian state TV’s Jadranka Kolarevic of supporting anti-Semitism by airing a concert by nationalist singer Marko “Thomson” Perkovic.

Perkovic and his fans use the symbols of Croatia’s World War II-era Ustasha regime, a puppet government controlled by Hitler and responsible for killing tens of thousands of Jews and Serbs. Some Ustsasha symbols were on stage during Perkovic’s most recent concert.

Ephraim Zuroff, head of the Israel branch of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, also complained about the airing of the concert.

Kolarevic publicly attacked Zuroff, saying: “Many people die daily in Palestine and he wants to comment on the situation in Croatia.”

The general director of Croatia’s state TV station, Vanja Sutlic, said it was inappropriate for Meirom to interfere in internal Croatian affairs.

Recommended from JTA

Advertisement