After Brussels’ sanitation workers purportedly chanted for the death of a Jewish Belgian politician, Viviane Teitelbaum, on Tuesday, the parliament member told The Jerusalem Post on Saturday that she and a friend had filed a complaint with the police and are further filing a complaint for action before a judge.
Two workers for the Bruxelles-Propreté – Brussels regional agency for public sanitation – allegedly yelled, “Death to Viviane” three times as they passed an election poster displaying Teitelbaum at her friend’s Uccle garden.
The resident told the European Jewish Congress (EJC) that three others heard the calls for death as well. The workers reportedly drove away before the witnesses could record the employees’ license numbers.
Bruxelles-Propreté related that a disciplinary investigation was launched and if the incident was confirmed, the company would take “the strictest disciplinary measures.”“We would also like to make it clear that these alleged facts run counter to the values of our company,” said Bruxelles Propreté.
Teitelbaum tied the calls for her death to her work "at the forefront of the fight against antisemitism."
Rising antisemitism
Teitelbaum tied the calls for her death to her work as being “at the forefront of the fight against antisemitism.”“I have been at the receiving end of many antisemitic insults and threats – even death threats, for many years,” said Teitelbaum.
"Since October 7, there has been an increase in the number and intensity of the insults. I have been physically attacked and threatened as well as other Jewish women during the March for women’s rights on the 8th of March."
Uccle MP Aurelie Czekalski said Thursday on social media that she was shocked by the death threats, and called for the condemnation and investigation of the “acts of hatred and antisemitism.Reform Movement Party leader Georges-Louis Bouchez accused other parties of stirring up hatred.“We must sanction these workers and put intelligence and rationality back into the debate,” Bouchez said on X on Thursday. “How many alarm signals will we need?”European Union Commission coordinator on combating antisemitism and fostering Jewish life Katharina von Schnurbein offered her support to Teitelbaum, saying that it was unacceptable that an electoral candidate was being threatened.“Viviane has worked throughout her career to combat antisemitism,” said von Schnurbein.The EJC on Thursday issued a statement calling for Bruxelles-Propreté to take action and offered its solidarity with the threatened politician.“The antisemitic death threats against MP Viviane Teitelbaum are absolutely unacceptable,” the EJC said.