02/12/2024 – 20:35
An establishment that lends equipment for sports in one of the richest regions of Europe was accused of refusing service to Jews. The Swiss police opened an investigation into “discrimination and incitement to hatred” after reports of anti-Semitism in Davos, a luxurious destination for skiers and headquarters of the World Economic Forum, because a snow sports equipment rental store allegedly refused to serve Jews.
Photo published by Swiss newspaper 20minuten shows a notice in Hebrew posted in the window of “Bergrestaurant Pischa”, a restaurant and ski rental shop in the small area of Pischa, on the outskirts of Davos: “Due to several unfortunate incidents, including the theft of a sled, we no longer rent sports equipment to our Jewish brothers.”
According to 20minuten, when contacted, the establishment responded in writing stating that they “no longer want the daily hassle” of Jewish guests leaving sleds on the slopes or equipment not being returned, or “returned defective”.
Jewish community will sue
Owner of “Bergrestaurant Pischa”, Ruedi Pfiffner apologized in a statement to Swiss tabloid Blick and said the warning was “certainly poorly worded” but that it was the result of growing tensions that “exploded”.
“We had to lock the sleds because members of the Jewish community were just taking them when we weren’t there,” he said, adding that he didn’t want to generalize and that the situation “had nothing to do with anti-Semitism.”
He said Jewish guests were “still welcome” and that he was “ready to talk to those affected.”
The Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities announced that it will take legal action.
“The poster is indisputably discriminatory,” said Secretary-General Jonathan Kreutner in a statement sent to the AFP news agency. “An entire group of guests are being collectively labeled because of their appearance and background, completely openly and brazenly.”
Anti-Semitism has been on the rise across Europe since the Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli military response in the Gaza Strip, territory neighboring Israel and controlled by the radical Islamic group.
Other incidents of anti-Semitism in Davos
It is not the first time that Davos has been the scene of tensions between locals and Jewish tourists.
According to an August report in the local newspaper Davoser Zeitung, between 3,000 and 4,000 Orthodox Jews vacationed there in the European summer of 2023 (winter in the Southern Hemisphere). At the time, there would have been “increasing criticism of the behavior of these tourists”.
In 2017, a hotel in the nearby village of Arosa hung signs instructing Jewish guests to shower before using the pool, prompting outrage and official complaints from Israel.
The hotel was very popular among ultra-Orthodox Jews because it catered to their needs, such as providing a freezer to store kosher food.
ra (AFP, dpa)
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