Brussels, Belgium, Feb 24, 2020 / 11:30 am
The Belgian Prime Minister, Sophie Wilmes, has condemned a traditional parade in the country which featured apparently anti-Semitic floats.
For the second consecutive year, organizers of the Aalst Carnival included numerous apparetnly anti-Semitic caricatures and floats in the annual parade. This year the event also included marchers who appeared to be dressed as Nazi soldiers.
"The federal government is sensitive to the reactions to some floats and costumes at the carnival," said Wilmes in a statement released on Sunday, Feb. 23. "Even though the Aalst Carnival is much more than [anti-Semitic displays], these actions damage our values and the reputation of our country."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="fr" dir="ltr">Les Juifs sont de la vermine (de la vermine pleine de fric qui contrôle le monde quand même) et les nazis sont des gars sympas que les enfants applaudissent et avec qui on a bien envie de boire une bière. Bienvenue au carnaval d'Alost en 2020, en Belgique, cœur de l'UE. Dégénérés <a href="https://t.co/svFR1MxxZf">pic.twitter.com/svFR1MxxZf</a></p>— Raphael Glucksmann (@rglucks1) <a href="https://twitter.com/rglucks1/status/1231659321701871619?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 23, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>