The Media Line: Amnesty International Event in Venice Sparks Outrage Over Gaza Report 

Amnesty International Event in Venice Sparks Outrage Over Gaza Report 

The event’s use of the term “genocide” drew backlash from Venice’s Jewish community, leading to venue changes and rising tensions 

By Giorgia Valente / The Media Line 

Venice has become the center of a heated debate following Amnesty International’s recent event aimed at presenting its findings on alleged genocide in Gaza. The controversy erupted over the event’s original title, “You Feel Like You Are Subhuman: The Genocide of Israel Against the Palestinian People in Gaza,” which some deemed inflammatory. This sparked venue changes and a broader discussion on freedom of expression versus cultural sensitivity. 

Amnesty International had planned the event for January 9, 2025, at the Venetian Athenaeum to present its report on the situation in Gaza over the past 15 months. However, the use of the term “genocide” provoked immediate backlash from the local Jewish community, which argued that it was provocative and trivialized their historical experiences. 

“This whole situation reminded me of Germany in 1933. We live in an historical moment in which hatred toward Jews is growing stronger than ever. Not only did Jews face the Shoah [Holocaust] in the past, but worldwide they are still contested,” explained Paolo Navarro Dina, vice president of the Jewish Community of Venice, to The Media Line. 

“The flyer Amnesty distributed mentioned the word ‘genocide,’ which trivializes our history. So, as the Jewish community, we asked the Venetian Athenaeum to opt for a different term, without opposing the event per se,” he added. 

For Amnesty, however, the title reflected the gravity of its findings. 

“After nine months of investigation, we concluded that Israel committed 13 acts of genocide, as defined by the 1948 Convention,” said Riccardo Noury, spokesperson for Amnesty Italy. “This was not a term we used lightly”, he added. 

The Venetian Athenaeum ultimately withdrew its support for the event, citing concerns over “public order.” 

“We criticized the mention of genocide, but we had no intention of censoring or canceling the event. This was the Athenaeum’s decision, not ours, but the way it was handled suggested otherwise,” Navarro Dina explained. 

The event was later moved to the University of Ca’ Foscari on the same date, drawing a crowd of about 500 people. However, it was presented under a different title: “Presentation and Discussion of the Report of Amnesty International Regarding the Israeli Military Campaign in Gaza”—suggesting the university’s intention to use more neutral language. 

“Without us knowing, the title was changed, but we still achieved our goal of sharing our findings with a larger audience than expected, despite the controversy that initially aimed to prevent the event by shifting the focus from this genocide to antisemitism,” Noury explained. 

“It is not a matter of measuring the number of victims; it is about recognizing that a state has committed acts prohibited by international law. It is our job to report it, just as we have in other international cases, such as Rwanda, Bosnia, Cambodia, and the Yezidis,” he added. 

Amnesty rejected accusations that its report incited hatred or antisemitism. 

“Antisemitism is a violation of human rights. It is unacceptable to accuse an organization like ours, which defends human rights, of being antisemitic,” countered Noury. 

Following the controversy, the Jewish community reported receiving hate mail and threats, escalating tensions. 

“We are facing hate unfairly and have received several letters. These people are not even anonymous—they write their full names—so we are still checking who they are,” Navarro Dina said. 

Messages ranged from accusations of political manipulation to more serious threats. 

“Some letters accused us of controlling political and economic power to silence counter-narratives, while others contained statements like, ‘You will end up in hell and be finally condemned,’” Navarro Dina revealed. 

“The overall atmosphere is heavy; we just witnessed the recent events in Bologna. I want to remind everyone that, most of the time, hatred towards Israel hides a far uglier facade,” Navarro Dina concluded. 

Amnesty distanced itself from these incidents and stressed that addressing uncomfortable truths is essential to protecting human rights. 

“There’s an epidemic of anger and division today, for sure, and we condemn any form of hate towards anyone. But equating our work with anti-Semitism undermines our pursuit of justice,” Noury concluded. 

Brought to you by www.srnnews.com

Click here to read the full article