April 2, 2015 — New York, New York
AJC is outraged by a Belgian insurance company’s refusal to renew insurance for a Jewish kindergarten in Brussels. The firm denied the school’s request, saying “it is too risky to insure a Jewish kindergarten these days,” Rabbi Menachem Margolin, director of the European Jewish Association, told AJC today.
“This is another ominous sign that can only deepen Jewish fears about their own security in Belgium,” said AJC Executive Director David Harris. AJC, the global Jewish advocacy organization, maintains European offices in Brussels, Berlin, Paris, and Rome.
“At a time when Jewish communities in Belgium, indeed across Europe, are on edge due to rising antisemitism and violence against Jews, requiring additional protection by police and soldiers, the insurance company’s decision to deny coverage is unconscionable,” said Harris.
An Islamist terrorist fatally attacked the Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels last year, and Belgian security forces have since carried out raids targeting radical Muslims suspected of links to jihadist groups.
Rabbi Margolin told AJC he is hopeful that another insurance company will be found soon to provide the general coverage requested. The kindergarten services 30 Jewish children in Brussels.
