Norway Cartoon Equates Israel With North Korea and Nazis
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Israel has called on a Norwegian daily newspaper to apologize for a cartoon that equates Israel with Nazi Germany and North Korea.
The cartoon appeared on Sept. 24 in the daily newspaper Dagbladet. In a letter to the editor published on Tuesday, Dan Poraz, first secretary at the Israeli Embassy in Oslo, called the cartoon “reprehensible and thoughtless.”
“There is a fine line between freedom of speech and hate speech, and this cartoon crossed that line. It’s about time that editors take responsibility. An apology may be a suitable way to start,” Poraz wrote.
“This is damaging because it can incite anti-Israeli bias that can lead to violent reactions,” he said.
The cartoon was reproduced with the letter.
The cartoon shows a woman standing in front of an organic food store holding an orange and saying: “These oranges come from Israel! You are supporting murderers!” The next panel shows her holding a box and saying: holding a carton: “This macaroni is produced in North Korea!? How did you even get a hold of these??” The final panel shows her holding a box of frozen pizza marked with a swastika, with a “Made in Nazi Germany” label, and says: “And this pizza is from N… what kind of store is this??”
Dagbladet’s editor has refused to apologize, saying Israel’s reaction is exaggerated, Ynet reported.
Cartoonist Ola Lysgaard told The Local – Norway that people missed the point of the cartoon, but did not elaborate.
Next: Israeli military attacks Gaza ‘terror’ sites after rocket fired on Ashdod >
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
