Two survivors of the October 7 Supernova festival massacre were detained, berated, and treated with suspicion by UK Border Force at Manchester Airport on Sunday, the Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester and Region claimed on Monday.
The two Jewish brothers, according to JRC, still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, were allegedly detained by the Border Force after the officers saw their Israeli passports and the pair had explained that they had come to the UK to speak to the Manchester Jewish community about their experiences as terrorism survivors and raise awareness for their non-profit to help fellow victims.
The officers allegedly said that they had to detain and interrogate the survivors for two hours because “they had to make sure that you are not going to do what you are doing in Gaza over there.”
JRC chief executive Marc Levy said that this comment proved the officers abused the survivors because they were motivated by “antisemitic intent.”
Levy said in a letter to the Manchester Airport Group that they were in possession of a video that showed the Israelis were not argumentative. Still, the border officer allegedly spoke in an aggressive, “unnecessary and demeaning tone,” telling them to “keep quiet, look at me, are you clear with that? We are the bosses, not you.”
The victims remained at the festival after the attack to help others
“For clarity, the individuals were attending the music festival when terrorists attacked, murdering hundreds of innocent civilians,” Levy wrote in the letter. “Instead of fleeing, the brothers, one of whom is a medic, remained at the festival site to save others, combat the terrorist, and treat the wounded.”
Levy demanded that the airport investigate the matter and ensure that Israeli passport holders are not subjected to similar discrimination.
The Manchester Airport Group told The Jerusalem Post that Border Force personnel are not employees, but because of the seriousness of the allegations they were in touch with the agency and the Home Office to ensure that they were being looked into.
Levy demanded that the airport investigate the matter and ensure that Israeli passport holders are not subjected to similar discrimination. JRC said on social media that the airport acknowledged the incident and recognized the severity of the allegations.
JRC also called on UK Home Secretary James Cleverly and the UK Home Office to address the issue.
North West Friends of Israel urged the Greater Manchester Police to investigate the issue as a hate crime.
“This is another shocking incident where UK government employees target Jews and discriminate against them because they oppose Israel’s actions in defending itself in Gaza,” said NWFOI co-chair Raphi Bloom. “In this case it was a border control officer and last week it was nurses at one of Manchester’s largest hospital. Jews are increasingly scared to identify themselves in public places. The UK government has promised to act on extremism and Jew hate but so far these are empty words. These civil servants needs to be sacked and the police investigate them for antisemitism immediately.”
The Home Office, Cleverly, and Israeli embassy to the UK did not immediately respond to Jerusalem Post requests for comment.
This is a developing story.
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