The British newspaper “The Guardian” decided not to renew the contract of the well-known English political cartoonist Steve Bell for a cartoon depicting the Israeli leaderBenjamin Netanyahu, perceived by the newspaper as anti-Semitic.
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The controversial illustration shows Netanyahu carrying out surgery on his own stomachin which a cut in the shape of the Gaza Strip can be seen.
Bell indicated on platform created by the British playwright William Shakespeare in his play The Merchant of Venice.
Guardian sacked cartoonist Steve Bell who had worked for the rag for over 40 years over ‘anti-Semitic’ Benjamin Netanyahu cartoon’.
I can’t see anything anti-Semitic about that cartoon anyone agree?? pic.twitter.com/C7JVjVunIh
— Al Albrecht (@AlAlbrecht269) October 16, 2023
He said that he sent his drawing to “The Guardian” and that “four hours after” having sent it, received a “dire phone call from the editorial office with the strangely cryptic message ‘pound of flesh.'”
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The illustrator remembers that he responded to that call with “sorry, I don’t understand.” and that the explanation given to him by someone from the newspaper’s editorial staff was: “Jewish type; flesh line; anti-Semitic simile.”
The character of the moneylender Shylock, from the Mercador de Venezia, sand considers one of the most notorious Jewish stereotypes in English literature due to his stingy nature.
In the play, Shylock asks for a “pound of flesh” from his friend Antonio as collateral to grant a loan.if this was not paid within a three-month deadline.
Steve Bell referenced one of the greatest political cartoons ever by David Levine, in which Lyndon Johnson shows off a scar from an operation, but the scar is in the shape of Viet Nam, Johnson’s downfall. Also, Bell exaggerated ALL of Netanyahu’s features. The Guardian is wrong. pic.twitter.com/gm7X5ub80c
— Bruce Paley #IStandWithUkraine #FBPE #ToriesOut 🎸 (@ThatEvilLife) October 16, 2023
The cartoonist himself maintained that his caricature of Netanyahu was inspired by a 1960s comic about former US president Lyndon B Johnson.
Speaking to the BBC, Bell noted that the interpretation made by “The Guardian” “did not make sense, since there were no references to that work in the cartoon, which shows Netanyahu, who is going to perform a surgical operation on himself while wearing boxing gloves, the catastrophic consequences of which remains to be seen” in reference to the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
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“The image in question was inspired by the late and great David Levine’s cartoon of President Lyndon Johnson showing the scar from his operationwhich Levine draws in the shape of a map of Vietnam,” says the British illustrator.
For its part, a spokesperson for “The Guardian” He noted today that “a decision has been made not to renew Steve Bell’s contract” and added that his cartoons “have been an important part of the Guardian.” over the last 40 years, we thank him and wish him the best.
EFE
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