Jewish Poet Hails Palestine’s Tamimi, Compares her to Anne Frank

Palestinian teenager Ahed al-Tamimi appears before an Israeli court. (Reuters)
Palestinian teenager Ahed al-Tamimi appears before an Israeli court. (Reuters)
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Jewish Poet Hails Palestine’s Tamimi, Compares her to Anne Frank

Palestinian teenager Ahed al-Tamimi appears before an Israeli court. (Reuters)
Palestinian teenager Ahed al-Tamimi appears before an Israeli court. (Reuters)

Prominent Israeli writer and poet Jonathan Geffen praised Palestinian teenager Ahed al-Tamimi’s courage against Israeli soldiers, comparing her to Jewish girl Anne Frank, who was killed in the Holocaust.

His post on Instagram drew the ire of Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who on Tuesday instructed army radio to censor Geffen.

Tamimi, 16, was arrested in December for slapping two Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank, in an incident caught on video.

She has been charged with 12 counts including assault and ordered kept in custody until the end of the legal proceedings.

Hailed as a hero by Palestinians who see her as bravely standing up to Israel's occupation, Tamimi has also caught the attention of the Israeli left.

"A pretty 17-year-old girl did a terrible thing, and when a proud Israeli officer once again raided her home, she slapped him," Geffen wrote on Monday.

"She was born into that, and in that slap there were 50 years of occupation and humiliation," he wrote.

"On the day the story of this struggle is told, you, Ahed Tamimi, red-haired like David who slapped Goliath, will be on the same page as Joan of Arc, Hannah Szenes and Anne Frank," Geffen said on Instagram.

In posts on his own social media accounts, the outspoken Lieberman lashed out at the writer, whose songs -- for adults and children -- are very popular in Israel.

"I've instructed the commander of army radio to stop playing or interviewing Jonathan Geffen in all the station's broadcasts, and I call on all media in Israel to do the same," the defense minister said.

"The State of Israel won't give a platform to a drunkard comparing a child (Frank) who was killed in the Holocaust and a hero warrior (Szenes) who fought the Nazi regime to Ahed Tamimi, the brat who attacked a soldier," he said.

"Geffen's pursuit of headlines is sickening and infuriating," Lieberman continued, say the Lebanese ‘Hezbollah's’ al-Manar television channel would be a more suitable venue for Geffen's "nonsense".

Other right-wing politicians condemned Geffen, with Minister of Culture and Sport Miriam Regev saying that it was “disgusting” for him to compare Tamimi to Szenes, Frank and King David.

“She is not innocent, but a criminal who supports terrorism and she is now in jail,” she added.

Israel's military radio station is under the command of the army chief and ultimately the defense minister -- but not on matters relating to content of what is broadcast.

The justice ministry issued a statement reiterating that Lieberman "has no legal authority to intervene in the content of the station's broadcasts".



Smoke From Canadian Fires Reaches Europe, Says EU Climate Monitor

 This photo provided by the Manitoba government shows wildfires in Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Manitoba government via AP)
This photo provided by the Manitoba government shows wildfires in Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Manitoba government via AP)
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Smoke From Canadian Fires Reaches Europe, Says EU Climate Monitor

 This photo provided by the Manitoba government shows wildfires in Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Manitoba government via AP)
This photo provided by the Manitoba government shows wildfires in Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Manitoba government via AP)

Heavy smoke from intense wildfires in Canada has reached northwestern Europe, the European Union's climate monitoring service said on Tuesday.

The huge plumes are at very high altitude and do not pose an immediate health risk, it said in a statement.

"Smoke originating from the wildfires in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan has been transported across the Atlantic," the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) said.

Satellites tracked the smoke in mid-May, with some plumes reaching as far east as Greece and the eastern Mediterranean.

"A second, much larger, smoke plume crossed the Atlantic during the last week of May, reaching northwestern parts of Europe on June 1," CAMS said.

Additional plumes are expected to shade the continent in the coming days.

Wildfire smoke is comprised of gaseous pollutants such as carbon monoxide, along with water vapor and particle pollution, which can be particularly hazardous to health.

A high concentration of carbon monoxide is expected to pass over northwestern France, including the Paris Basin, on Tuesday.

The high-altitude smoke headed for Europe is not expected to have a significant impact on surface air quality, but is likely to result in hazy skies and reddish-orange sunsets.

Manitoba in central Canada is experiencing its worst start to the fire season in years due to drought, and Saskatchewan to the west declared a state of emergency at the end of May, evacuating thousands of residents.

"Central regions of Canada have experienced a very intense few weeks in terms of wildfire emissions," said Mark Parrington, scientific director at CAMS.

Canadian authorities have forecast a more intense fire season than usual this summer in central and western Canada, due in particular to severe or extreme drought.

Elsewhere, extensive forest fires have been raging in Russia's Far Eastern Federal District since early April, particularly east of Lake Baikal, generating carbon emissions of around 35 million tons, Copernicus reported.