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24 people charged for harassing Italian Auschwitz survivor online
People accused of abusing her include Italian celebrity chef Gabriele Rubini and local politician Nicola Barreca
January 31, 2023 17:42
People accused of abusing her include Italian celebrity chef Gabriele Rubini and local politician Nicola Barreca
January 31, 2023 17:4224 people have been charged by the Italian police for antisemitic online attacks against Holocaust survivor Liliana Segre on international Holocaust Memorial Day.
The 92-year-old senator, an Italian symbol of the fight against antisemitism, accused 24 people of antisemitic attacks, including death threats and defamation.
The suspects have been charged by the Italian police - the Milan Carabinieri - for insults against Senator Segre, sources told ynetnews.
The suspects include Italian celebrity chef Gabriele Rubini and Nicola Barreca - the secretary of the Reggio Calabria Branch of the League Party of Matteo Salvini. Barreca has now been suspended from Matteo Salvini's party but is challenging the allegations and denies having made the antisemitic comments.
Rubini, professionally known as Chef Rubio, accused Segre of "a deafening silence over the plight of Palestine," and called Israel a "fascist" state.
The Italian culinary chef has been charged with antisemitism on several occasions before, but denied the claims and said he has nothing against Jews, only against Zionists. His twitter biography reads “Zionism = Mafia, Genocide, Ethnic Cleansing, Occupation, Colonialism, Apartheid, Racism, Fascism, Supremacism”.
Israel Honorary Consul Marco Carrai said it was "disappointing that so many young people follow a figure who incites social hate like this chef," and added that unlike Rubio's many tattoos, the one on Segre's arm had been inscribed when she reached Auschwitz as a girl.
Segre survived Auschwitz concentration camp and became a senator for life by President Sergio Mattarella in 2018 – a prestigious honour in Italy reserved for only a select few.
She has acted as one of Italy's most prominent voices in combatting antisemitism, racism, and hate speech.
In recent years, Segre has been subject to severe antisemitic onslaught from both right and left wing political sectors of Italy. As a result, the elderly survivor is constantly accompanied by bodyguards.