Jewish Prison Guard Investigated for Nazi Salute in Lisbon
Portuguese prosecutors are investigating a Jewish prison guard and five of his colleagues for making a Nazi salute.
The six men participated in a demonstration last month against the government’s austerity measures in front of Portugal’s parliament in Lisbon, Diario de Noticias, a daily newspaper, reported earlier this week. The newspaper did not name the men, but reported that one of them was Jewish.
The decision to investigate the men came almost a month after the demonstration, in which a crowd of government employees, mostly male and many wearing masks, were seen singing the national anthem and waving their arms in what prosecutors said were Nazi salutes that violated Portuguese law against the display of fascist symbols.
The Jewish prison guard told the daily he was “indignant” over the decision.
A spokesperson for the group told the sapo.pt news site that the investigation was baseless as none of the guards had any connections to the extreme right, and that it was a way for the government to punish them for participating in the protest rally.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.